Onodera Ritsu to Takahashi Misaki no Baii
by Hikari Bara
Summary: Onodera has sworn to prove Takano-san wrong...he has friends he can go out with besides that man! Meanwhile, Usagi-san is getting jealous over some new guy Misaki has been rambling on about...who is this Onodera bastard? (Takano x Onodera Usami/Usagi x Misaki)
1. Chapter 1

Onodera Ritsu & Takahashi Misaki no Baii

Chapter 1

As usual, Onodera Ritsu was feeling exhausted, hungry and confused. At work today, Takano-san had dumped a stack of old manuscripts onto his desk just before Onodera was about to leave, and told him to explain why certain edits were made to the upper half, then make his own corrections on the bottom half. He ended up staying two hours later than he had planned and buying another bento from the convenience store in front of the station.

_It's all stupid Takano-san's fault, _Onodera thought bitterly, blaming his fatigue, hunger, and muddled thoughts all on the older man.

Then, after Onodera had finished the old manuscripts and was preparing to leave for a second time, Takano-san whispered in his ear, _"I love you."_

_ Jeez, how cliché and persistent do they _make _people these days? _Onodera grimaced down at the sidewalk, shaking his head at his thoughts of Takano-san. _I need friends or something. Well, not saying that I don't have any friends, but…_ Come to think of it, Takano-san was the only person he really talked to on a regular basis outside of work. _Dammit._

As he walked up on his apartment, he made a vow to himself. _This Saturday, I _swear _I will go out and have a good time with friends. That'll show that stupid Takano-san!_

Unfortunately, the next day when Onodera asked his co-workers if they were free that Saturday, no one seemed to be.

"Ah, sorry, Ricchan!" Kisa-san exclaimed, looking awkward. He slapped his hands together to look as if he were praying and continued, "But I already have plans for Saturday! This is our first actual day off in months, and I made plans with…with…" He trailed off, looking anywhere but at Onodera. "But really, I'm sorry!"

_What the hell was that? _Onodera thought as he watched Kisa-san practically fling himself onto his laptop and begin to type furiously.

Hatori-san had a similar answer. "I'm going to meet with one of my authors on Saturday, so I can't."

"But Saturday's a day off. We don't have to meet with our authors!" Onodera protested, though his hope was rapidly fading.

Hatori-san looked away. "Right."

_Damn this! _Onodera couldn't even muster up the confidence to ask Mino-san. He was sure that a forever-smiling, polite and handsome man would never have a free day to spare. It would be full of girls who had booked the day months ago. Or, Mino-san probably had some guy friends of his own.

Just then, Takano-san strolled into the room, his black bag full of papers slung over his shoulder. "Onodera. Make sure your own manuscripts are done before you go making plans for Saturday," he said coolly as he sat down at his desk.

"I _am _done with my manuscripts!" Onodera shouted. The office, however, immune to Emerald's frequent outbursts, carried on as if no one had even spoken.

Only the Emerald editors took notice to Onodera's cry. "Ricchan, keep it down," Kisa-san mumbled, not looking up from his laptop and certainly not pausing from his overly-dramatic typing.

"Take it easy, Onodera-kun," Mino-san piped up from his own work, but also not making the effort to look up.

Hatori-san just ignored them all, currently talking into the phone in a low, irritated tone to one of his authors. (A/N Oh-ho, who could that be?)

Onodera sat down at his desk and glared at his laptop. "Sorry," he muttered. He could _feel _Takano-san's intense gaze as he opened his laptop and began to finish up the proposal he had started yesterday.

Already, Onodera's stomach was hurting. Now, it was either the constant immense amount of stress from work, or the old rice he had eaten last night from the back of the fridge.

Once again, Takano-san flagged Onodera down before he could escape Marukawa.

"Onodera. I need you to—"

_"No!" _Onodera shouted, not even letting Takano finish his sentence. "I refuse! Get someone else to do it, I'm tired and I'm going home!"

Takano-san didn't miss a beat. "Oh. So you want to act useless all of a sudden? That's fine. I'll just get Hatori to do it." He shrugged and began to walk away.

Leaving Onodera sitting there, infuriated at Takano-san for deliberately leaving him torn between being labeled useless and going home and taking a well-deserved (and very much needed) hot bath.

"Fine!" Onodera shouted, catching up to Takano-san and glaring at him with piercing jade eyes.

Takano-san handed him a stack of papers. "Take these to a woman called Aikawa. I saw her in the lobby about thirty minutes ago, but I didn't get the papers until now."

Onodera nodded and snatched the papers out of Takano-san's hands, then quickly maneuvered around the taller man and scurried down the hall. _I really, really hope she hasn't already left. And wait, dammit, I don't even know what this woman looks like!_

He found himself in the lobby alone with another boy, who looked like a university student. He walked up to the boy, who also seemed to be looking for someone.

"Um, hello," Onodera greeted hesitantly. The boy jumped, startled, but turned around all the same. His eyes were widened and Onodera noticed that they were a similar green to his. "Hi, I'm Onodera Ritsu from the Emerald Shoujo Manga department. I'm looking for a woman named Aikawa, do you happen to know who she is?"

The boy's eyes instantly shone with relief. "Ah, thank goodness! I'm kind of Aikawa-san's helper, she's already gone home because she felt sick—and kind of irritated—but I stayed so I could pick these up for her." He smiled at Onodera, who handed him the papers. "I'm Takahashi Misaki, nice to meet you!"

Onodera smiled at the boy's intense enthusiasm, even for just a favor such as this. "Nice to meet you, too, Takahashi-kun. Well then, if you'll excuse me." He wasn't even five steps away before Takahashi-kun called to him again.

"Um, Onodera-san!" Onodera spun around to see Takahashi-kun gazing up at him with pleading eyes, which looked close to tears. "I'm so, so very sorry to trouble you, but…I forgot my money and my cell phone at my landlord's apartment, and I don't have a car, and I have no way to get home, and…" He sniffed a few times, his previous innocent joy for successfully running an errand long gone. "Will you please lend me money for a taxi to get home? I promise I'll pay—"

Onodera couldn't help it. Somewhere in the middle of Takahashi-kun's plea, he felt a laugh coming on. He shut his eyes and laughed right in Takahashi-kun's face, much to Takahashi-kun's surprise.

"Sorry," Onodera breathed as he caught his breath after about thirty seconds of intense laughing. He would be the first to say that he'd do the same thing, but hearing about someone else doing it for him kind of relaxed him for a moment. "Anyway, I think with how much of a klutz you sound to be, I'll pay for your taxi _and _go with you to make sure you don't get lost halfway there."

Takahashi-kun forgot about the brunette man's rudeness and smiled as well. "Okay, sounds great! I just hope Usagi-san doesn't get impatient waiting for me!" The boy scratched the back of his head guiltily. "I was actually supposed to come back an hour ago, but then I met up with Aikawa-san and we just kept talking!"

Onodera smiled as he realized that he did the same thing to anyone Takano-san. Well, at least, he _tried _not to talk to Takano-san too much.

"Alright, are you ready to go?" Onodera asked the shorter brunette.

"Yeah!" Takahashi-kun exclaimed, his brightness almost overwhelming to Onodera.

The older man flagged down a taxi and they both climbed in. Almost halfway down Takahashi-kun's destination route, Onodera realized that he could have just made a friend. _I wonder if Takahashi-kun is doing anything this Saturday?_

"Hey, Takahashi-kun," Onodera said, not looking at the younger male but instead looking out at the city blurring by through the taxi window.

"Yeah?"

"What are you doing this Saturday?"

Pause.

For a fleeting moment, Onodera thought that he had creeped Takahashi-kun out. But then, he replied, "Nothing much, I was just going to go out. What about you, Onodera-san?"

Onodera barely caught himself from shouting, "Really? Are you sure?" which would probably scare both Takahashi-kun and the taxi driver. Instead, he silently took a deep breath before he replied. "I'm the same. Would you mind if I went along with you to go buy manga? I actually want to see some myself."

"You read manga, Onodera-san?" Takahashi-kun asked, sounding skeptical.

Onodera forced out a laugh. "Ah, no. But remember, I'm a shoujo manga editor and I just want to see, you know, who all is buying my author's manga…?" he ended up asking more of a question than answering Takahashi-kun's. And plus, _he _was the one who had gotten all worked up about how Saturday was their day off and that Hatori-san didn't need to meet with his author.

_But this isn't work, _Onodera forced himself to think. _This is personal interest!_

"Oh. Okay, then!" Takahashi-kun didn't press Onodera further, much to the older man's relief. "But we can't _only _spend a Saturday out buying manga. And even if we did, it'd be such a waste of a perfect day! We should…" Takahashi-kun trailed off, and Onodera glanced over at him to see the boy's chin rested on the heel of his palm, deep in thought.

"Well, we could go and buy manga for you, then we could go buy some books for me. Then we could just wing it from there," Onodera suggested.

Takahashi-kun snapped out of his pondering daze at the word "manga" and nodded eagerly. "Sure! That wouldn't take up too much time, but enough to let us think about what we want to do next."

"So how about we meet up outside your apartment on Saturday around ten? Then we could eat lunch out," Onodera said. He was kind of surprised that Takahashi-kun was just going along with him, an almost complete stranger. He, on the other hand, would take anything he could get, desperate to prove that he could spend time with people other than Takano-san and his co-workers.

"Sounds great!" Takahashi-kun exclaimed. Suddenly, the taxi pulled to a stop.

"Thank you for the ride," Takahashi-kun said to both the taxi driver and to Onodera.

"You're welcome," the driver said, complete with a flashy smile.

"Anytime," Onodera replied, waving goodbye to his new young friend.

_I'll show you, Takano-san!_

ent here...


	2. Chapter 2

Takahashi Misaki no Baii

Chapter 2

"Usagi-san~" Misaki chimed from the downstairs where he had just entered from being taken home by Onodera-san. "I'm back! Sorry I'm late!"

_I wonder if he already went to sleep? Oh jeez, I just hope he isn't mad at me! _Misaki thought, hopping onto the couch and picking up the first volume of The Kan he had been rereading earlier. He replaced it with Aikawa-san's papers and began to read.

"Mi…sa…ki?" a rough, tired voice muttered from the upstairs.

_Well, he's not asleep, and he's not ignoring me, so that's a good sign, right? Right? _Misaki put the manga down and stared up at Usagi-san, who was draped over the handrail, looking like he had seen Death himself.

"U-U-Usagi-s-san?" MIsaki stuttered, reflexively shooting off the couch and into a defensive stance.

"Need…more…Misaki…" Usagi-san stumbled down the rest of the stairs, and using the momentum from his descent, spiraled into Misaki, ultimately knocking him down to the wooden floor and almost into unconsciousness.

Misaki, fighting away the dancing stars threatening to overtake him, didn't know what Usagi-san was doing until he could feel a warm tongue running down his cold neck, fresh from the chilly outside winter air. He immediately blushed and tried to push the heavier man off of him, but to no avail. "U…Usagi-san…" Misaki panted, a heated shiver already running down his spine.

"Where were you this whole time?" Usagi-san asked in-between licks, letting Misaki's tiny yelps energize him.

"Ma…rukawa…"

Usagi-san nipped Misaki's collarbone, while simultaneously unbuttoning Misaki's shirt. "Was Aikawa keeping you?" he asked against Misaki's chest, dropping his searching lips lower with each word.

Misaki replied with a small yelp, and Usagi-san glanced up at his lover's tomato-red face.

_Idiot Usagi-san! I'm too tired right now! And plus, I want to tell you about Onodera-san, my new friend! _

But Misaki just couldn't muster up the strength to haul the bigger man off of him. Usagi-san began to suck lightly on Misaki's nipple, swirling his tongue agonizingly slowly around and around in a circle. Misaki could feel the heat in his lower body become even hotter, and his face burned more intensely as he realized this. This, though, gave him the strength to push at Usagi-san's chest and force out, "Usagi-san…I want…to…tell you…about…today…"

Usagi-san froze for a moment, then released Misaki with a _pop!_

"I'm listening."

Misaki looked away. "N-not here, on the couch, perverted Usagi-san!"

Usagi-san sighed, but got up from Misaki and walked over to the couch to sit down. Slowly, Misaki followed him, but sat on the couch opposite of his lover.

"Well, today I went to collect papers for Aikawa-san," Misaki began, nodding to the small stack of papers that were lying on the table. "And I met this guy that was delivering the papers to her. Well, he paid for a taxi to bring me home because I forgot my wallet and my cell phone at home, and I don't have a car, since I won't let you buy me one," Misaki pointed out yet again. He wouldn't let Usagi-san keep spoiling him.

But spoiling his younger lover was the last thing on Usagi-san's mind at that moment. "What guy? Why would he just help out a random stranger like you out of nowhere? Did he come onto you?" Usagi-san asked, his tone forceful.

"N-no, he didn't!" Misaki shouted, his voice cracking a tiny bit. "His name is Onodera…Onodera…" Misaki smacked his head a few times, trying to remember the man's first name. "Well, his surname was Onodera, and he works at Marukawa, too. In the Emerald Shoujo Manga department."

Usagi-san stared blankly at Misaki. "Shoujo manga? Are you kidding me? You're going to tell me that you let some weird guy from the _shoujo manga _department take you home?"

"Yeah, and we're going to hang out on Saturday! He said that we could eat lunch out, and we would buy manga and he would go buy books for himself. It's going to be so much fun! He's really nice, too," Misaki stopped only to take a deep breath before continuing. "Oh, but I forgot to ask for his email address! Then we could have talked more about what we were going to do." Misaki shrugged, knowing that he wouldn't think of anything when all he would be thinking about tomorrow was his new manga buddy.

"You're not going," Usagi-san said bluntly after he realized that Misaki was done running his mouth. He walked into the kitchen to brew the one thing he could actually make: coffee.

"Wha—why?" Misaki whined, following Usagi-san into the kitchen.

"Because I said so. You're not going out with some random, strange guy you just met who happens to work at Marukawa." Usagi-san's tone said "no questions asked."

But Misaki, being Misaki, couldn't care less. "I'm going with Onodera-san and that's final!" For effect, he stomped up the stairs and into his room, slamming the door behind him.

Usagi-san sighed and muttered, "Well, at least, you're not going _alone."  
__

So...that's chapter two! Hope you enjoyed it. Don't worry, it'll get more interesting. Let me know if you want to see something specific in later chapters but...I don't

think I could force myself to write smut again...already attempted it in a different story and it took just about all I could muster to write barely a thousand words. So

till next week!


	3. Chapter 3

Onodera Ritsu no Baii

Chapter 3

* * *

Onodera opened the taxi door after paying the driver and walked into the apartment building. He was feeling apprehensive and excited about the upcoming Saturday. He had finally found someone willing to spend time with him, besides Takano-san.

_Ha! This'll show you, _Onodera thought triumphantly, smirking slightly.

But his smirk disappeared as soon as the elevator doors slid open to reveal a tall, dark-haired man leaning against the wall in wait between Onodera's apartment door and the man's own. Onodera gulped nervously and tried to fast walk past the man and simultaneously pull his key out of his bag. All thoughts of this Saturday were long gone.

"Onodera. Where were you?" Takano-san asked, not moving from his perch against the wall.

Onodera, still trying to find his key, could feel the perspiration begin to run down his neck. Was this some kind of horrible de ja vu? He could've _sworn _this had happened before. "I-it's not like it's any of your business!" he stuttered, _still _trying to find his key.

_It's always that goddamned key!_

"Yes, it is," Takano-san retorted evenly. "Everything about you is my business, Onodera."

Onodera didn't even try to ask "How so?" because he knew what Takano-san's answer would be, and didn't really want to hear it.

"Who were you with?" Takano-san pressed further.

Onodera finally found his key and whipped it out of his bag, pulling out some loose papers as well. He shoved the key into the keyhole and frantically turned the tiny silver object that would lead him away from Takano-san. But before he could open the door, two large hands slammed into the wood, and Onodera found himself being loomed over by the larger man.

"Um, Takano-san, I really need to—"

_"Who were you with?" _Takano-san asked again, his voice cold.

"A-a friend," Onodera answered elusively. Though it was no use. Takano-san would find out, one way or another.

"Which friend?" Takano-san asked, leaning in closer to the smaller man.

Onodera, still facing the door and oblivious to his boss's approach, replied, "A new friend, you wouldn't know him, though!" He grabbed the doorknob, turned it and pulled in an attempt to get away from Takano-san. Instead, he felt himself being turned around and soft lips met his own.

Onodera tried to push Takano-san away, but he was simply just too weak. "T-Takano-san—" Onodera protested against the other man's lips, and Takano-san used the opportunity to dart his tongue into his first love's mouth and tangle it with the other man's. Onodera's face began to heat up, and he pushed harder against Takano-san's chest. Finally, he brought his hand up and slapped his boss, stunning the bigger man for a moment and allowing Onodera to slip inside his apartment, locking his door.

"Onodera!" Takano-san yelled from outside.

"Shut up, you're bothering the neighbors," Onodera hissed back, sliding down the door and onto the floor.

"Then let me in," Takano-san pressed.

_No. No. No. Leave me alone! _Onodera thought, clutching his head. Why did Takano-san have to make him so confused time and time again?

"I'm going shopping with a guy I met at Marukawa on Saturday, okay?" _I'm only saying this so he'll go away, _Onodera assured himself. "He wants to buy manga, and I'll be getting books. Happy now? So go back to your own apartment!"

There was a pause, but no sound of footsteps retreating to the room next door. "What's this guy's name?"

"Takahashi Misaki." _No, what are you doing? Why did you tell him that? _Onodera clenched his fist, about to punch himself when Takano-san spoke again.

"Fine. But you know, you could have made plans with me on Saturday."

_ No, you're the last person I wanted to spend my day off with. _But something about the way Takano-san had spoken left a tiny twinge of doubt in his mind. _He sounded…hurt._

Finally, after a few minutes of silence, Onodera heard the sounds of footsteps walking back into the other apartment. There was no "I love you" confession, and Onodera had to admit, he didn't mind. But what he _did _mind was the fact that Takano-san had sounded genuinely wounded from Onodera wanting to spend time with practically a complete stranger rather than with him.

Onodera sat there for about another hour, still thinking about this Saturday, Takahashi Misaki, and Takano-san. They were all things that confused him and gave him a stomachache. He didn't eat before he went to bed, just simply changed into some old sweats and a T-shirt, (flinging his worn clothes onto the floor) and flopping onto the bed, not even burying himself under the covers.

* * *

Soooo, thank you for the wonderful reviews! I love getting them when I'm just sitting in class, bored out of my mind, 'cuz when I read them I get all happy and smiley, and the people around me think I'm a freak :p Anyway, the next chapter will be a bit longer, since the last two have been so short. Till next week!


	4. Chapter 4

Onodera Ritsu & Takahashi Misaki no Baii

Chapter 4

* * *

Onodera was about thirty minutes early arriving in front of the extravagant apartment complex that the taxi had dropped Takahashi-kun off at. He hadn't really seen the huge building that night, but now with the sun shining, he had the opportunity to fully appreciate it.

And appreciate it he did.

"Woah, this is amazing!" he exclaimed to no one in particular. He sat down on a bench in front of the building, wondering about how rich Takahashi-kun must be.

"O-Onodera-kun?"

Onodera's head snapped up to see Takahashi-kun standing there, looking embarrassed next to a tall, good-looking silver-haired man. His eyes widened in shock.

"Usami-sensei?" Onodera couldn't hide the surprise in his voice.

His previous author's face brightened immediately. "Oh! You're going shopping with Onodera _Ritsu!" _

Takahashi-kun glanced at Onodera quizzically, but didn't ask anything. Just then, a voice spoke up from behind Onodera.

"So the short one is this Takahashi Misaki kid, and the tall one is one of your old authors, am I correct?"

Onodera jumped in shock, spinning around and screaming, "Takano-san!" at the top of his lungs.

The black-haired man grinned. "Yes, Onodera?"

"Why the hell are you here?" he shouted, not even trying to regain his composure.

"I wanted to follow you to see who you were going out with. But if it's your old author's roommate, I'm sure it'll be okay." He tossed a knowing glance at Onodera, who blushed slightly.

_ You're too open! _Onodera thought, annoyed.

But then he realized that Usami-sensei was saying a similar thing to Takahashi-kun. "It's fine if it's Onodera. Have fun, Misaki." Takahashi-kun blushed, then hastily whispered something to Usami-sensei, who widened his eyes. "Okay."

Takahashi-kun then walked up to Onodera and said, "Usag—Usami-san can come with us, right? I mean, you two can catch up if you want to. And your friend can come as well," he added, glancing up at Takano-san.

"No!" Onodera immediately protested, which caused the three of them to stare at the brunette. _Oh, crap, _he thought. "I mean, well, I…" He could _feel _Takano-san's smirk.

"Sure, Takahashi-kun, I would love to come. I've actually been meaning to go out and buy some new books, anyway," the dark-haired man said.

"Okay!"

Onodera clutched his stomach. _Oh God. Why?_

Usami-sensei offered to drive them out to the closest bookstore in his red Ferrari. The only person who was completely against the idea was Takahashi-kun, but majority rules. Even Takano-san sounded interested.

"It's not every day you see an Italian sports car, let alone ride in it," he said, shrugging.

_True, _Onodera thought.

They all exited the car that Usami-sensei had skillfully parallel parked right in front of the store. Takahashi-kun's face instantly brightened the moment he entered through the double doors, and he ran off into the manga section of the store.

Onodera glanced around, trying to decide where to go first when he saw someone unexpected.

"Kisa-san?"

The tiny, petite man spun around from his conversation he was having with a tall, princely-looking man.

"R-Ricchan!" Kisa-san exclaimed, wearing a shocked expression. He spun around again to look at the man he had been talking to, then back to Onodera. "Um, right, uh, this is my friend I was telling you about!" He pointed at the princely man with both his hands.

"I see," Onodera said. "Hi, then. I'm Onodera Ritsu, Kisa-san's co-worker." He walked up to the man to shake hands with him.

"Hello, Onodera-san! I'm Yukina Kou," he said, handing Onodera a business card. Always prepared, Onodera handed Yukina-kun his own. (A/N Ha. Always prepared.)

"What are you doing here, Ricchan?" Kisa-san asked, his surprise fading. He looked around and spotted Takano-san almost immediately.

"T-Takano-san! Haha, hello!" Kisa-san's shock returned, along with a pinch of awkwardness.

"Hello, Kisa-san."

Kisa-san turned back to Onodera and walked closer. "I didn't know you were friends with the boss!" he whispered into Onodera's ear.

Onodera's eyes widened. _Oh crap, it _is _unusual to see a boss and a subordinate just going out to buy books! Think, self, think! What lie can I make up?_

"Um, well, that's—we just ran into each other, walking up to the bookstore! Right," Onodera stuttered, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

Before Kisa-san could reply, Takahashi-kun shouted from the manga section, "Onodera-san! I found a volume that you edited! I'm going to get it!"

Immediately, Usami-sensei hushed him with a, "Shut up, we're in public."

"Sorry!"

Both Kisa-san and Yukina-kun looked to Onodera. "Who're they?" Kisa-san asked.

"They're friends!" Onodera assured them. "Well, actually one of my previous authors and a friend."

Yukina-kun gasped. "Isn't that Usami Akihiko, that famous author?" he exclaimed, his eyes shining pools of amber. "Onodera-san, you were Usami Akihiko's editor? Wow! That's so cool!" He looked down at Kisa-san. "Why didn't you tell me one of your co-workers used to edit _the _Usami Akihiko's works?"

Kisa-san's mouth dropped as well. "Wait, you were Usami Akihiko's editor? Why didn't you tell me?" He grabbed Onodera's black sweatshirt sleeve and shook him as hard as the tiny man could.

"S-s-sorry, it j-just didn't com-me up!" Onodera stuttered as he was shaken. Finally, Kisa-san stopped at a word from Yukina-kun.

As Onodera was regaining his composure, Takahashi-kun skipped up to him and announced, "Onodera-san, I got one of the volumes that you edited!" He held up the first volume of _Girl's Savvy. _"I've never really read shoujo manga, but if a guy like you edits this kind of thing every day, I think it would be fine!" He took the volume away from Onodera's face to look at Kisa-san and Yukina-kun.

"Who're they?" Takahashi-kun asked, still smiling.

"This is my co-worker, Kisa-san, and his friend, Yukina-kun." Onodera was growing tired of introducing people. In fact, he was growing tired of this Saturday in general. He hadn't even gone looking for a book yet.

_Wait, where's Takano-san? _He just realized that his boss was nowhere to be seen. _I hope he got bored and left or something._

"Hello! I'm Onodera-san's friend, Takahashi Misaki," the boy greeted brightly, shaking both of the men's hands in turn. Onodera sighed and tried to walk away towards the literature section of the bookstore, but before he could do so, Usami-sensei walked up to the group behind Takahashi-kun.

"What's going on?" he asked, glancing at everyone.

Yukina-kun and Kisa-san's jaws dropped as they stared at the revered author. "U-Usami Ak-Ak-Akihiko?" they both stammered in unison.

Onodera could tell that Usami-sensei was a little annoyed at having people gawk at him, but he was used to it. "Hello." At least he wasn't a show off, and didn't say something like, "In the flesh," or some clichéd line like that.

"I've loved your works for years!" Kisa-san exclaimed.

"Same, same!" Yukina-kun chimed in.

Onodera wanted to facepalm. To a person who didn't know Usami-sensei personally, you couldn't tell, but both he and Takahashi-kun knew that Usami-sensei was growing annoyed with Kisa-san and Yukina-kun's admiration.

"Thank you for your support," Usami-sensei replied, pasting a fake smile onto his face. Onodera had seen Usami-sensei smile for real, and there was no comparison. He was pretty sure that even the two fans could now tell that Usami-sensei was faking his small smile.

"You're welcome," they both replied, attempting to put a cap on their enthusiasm.

"Onodera, where did your friend Takano go?" Usami-sensei asked, noticing that the man was gone as well.

"I don't know, maybe we should go look for him!" Onodera said hastily, casting a quick glance at Kisa-san and Yukina-kun. "Sorry, Kisa-san, but we have to find Takano-san. I mean, because, he said he wanted to talk to me about one of my manuscripts!" he added gracelessly as Kisa-san raised an eyebrow.

"Alright then, Ricchan! We'll talk more at work tomorrow! Bye!" the petite man finally said, waving. Yukina-kun waved also, after seeing Kisa-san do so.

"Those are some interesting friends, Onodera," Usami-sensei said, following Onodera as he swiftly fled from Kisa-san's knowing eyes. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. "Which reminds me, why in the world are you working with shoujo manga?"

Onodera froze. "Uhm, well…" he began, starting up his pace once again and scratching the back of his head. How was he supposed to explain _exactly why _he had stayed? He hadn't even accepted the truth himself. "You see, there was a mix-up and…I just ended up liking working with shoujo manga!" he finished lamely.

_ Dammit, dammit, dammit! Who would _like _working with manga at all?! You'd have to be a hardcore masochist to even consider enjoying the shit we get!_

Usami-sensei raised an eyebrow, mirroring Onodera's thoughts in a single gesture. "Huh…" he said, narrowing his eyes.

"Onodera, over here."

Onodera's head snapped up to see Takano-san waving him over from the literature section of the store.

_Saved! But, he was there the whole time?_

"Ah, there you are, Takano-san! Haha, okay, we're leaving now," Onodera said, suddenly wanting to escape the bookstore. He could _feel _Kisa-san's stare from behind the manga shelves. Thankfully, Takahashi-kun didn't complain, and Usami-sensei didn't show any sign of irritation. And to top it all off, Takano-san actually grinned and consented.

A grin that made Onodera slightly uneasy of what lay behind his boss's dark eyes.

* * *

_...Am I that predictable?_ Thank you again for the reviews~! I absolutely love them! Ah, and about the Girl's Savvy thing, I have _no frickin clue _what the names of the manga Onodera edits are. If you know, uhm, good for you? You can let me know and make me feel like an idiot. Anyway, things are about to get kinda random, so just bear with me. You may think "Wtf is this chick doing, I thought this fic was actually good, etc." But please, bear with me, it'll get better!

Also, if you want to see the other two Junjou couples appear, it'll have to be on request...I never watched Terrorist because it annoyed me (no offense! But if it's a request, I'll watch and read it) and Egoist was good, but I have no idea how I would incorporate them into this story. Obviously, all of the Sekaiichi couples were easier, and I like Sekaiichi just a fraction better than Junjou. So...

Till next week!


	5. Chapter 5

Takano Masamune no Baii

Chapter 5

* * *

"Well that was pointless," Takano muttered as they left the store.

"No, it wasn't! I got to buy one of Onodera-san's works! That's not a waste!" Takahashi exclaimed, throwing up one of the many manga he had bought. Usami had supplied Takahashi with the money, of course, despite Onodera's offer.

Speaking of that fool, where was he?

Takano glanced around and found Onodera lingering at the back of the group, deep in conversation with Usami. He felt a flash of irritation as he watched the small man laugh and smile as he talked to the older writer, something he almost never did with Takano. What was so different about his former author? Why could Onodera talk to Usami, but not to him?

Takano glanced at Takahashi. The boy was also looking at the pair, but not with eyes full of jealousy—they looked innocently intrigued.

"Where are we going?" Takano threw back at the pair, sending Onodera an intense stare when he pulled his gaze away from his former author.

"We can go back to my apartment, and Misaki could cook us something," Usami replied, giving Takano a curious look. It read, "What?"

Takano glanced back at the rich man's bright, unmistakably foreign and unique sports car. A small crowd of people had gathered around it, marveling at the luxurious car. He wanted to break his usually stoic expression and make a face at the intrigued onlookers, but he held himself back. He didn't want Usami or Takahashi to get the wrong idea about his personality.

"I can help you cook, Takahashi-kun," Onodera offered.

Takano barked out a laugh at the comment. "Sure, we all want _you _in the kitchen, Onodera."

Onodera shot him a glare. "Shut up…" he muttered, obviously expecting no one to hear, but even Usami smirked at the sidecomment. "But what are we supposed to even do at your apartment, Usami-sensei?" Onodera continued.

"Well, I can show you some of my other works—"

"I've already bought all of them!" Onodera interrupted, earning a startled widening of the eyes from the Sensei. "I'm glad that whoever replaced me as your editor is amazing, he does even better than me!" he exclaimed. Takano sighed in relief as he realized that this was all they had been talking about—nothing intimate, just a shared love of books.

They all climbed into the Ferrari after Usami had cleared the onlookers away with a steel glare. Onodera hopped in the backseat next to Takahashi, and Takano was forced to sit next to the revered author.

The first five minutes of the car ride were silent, without even the radio playing. Takahashi fidgeted and squirmed constantly, and Onodera gazed fiercely out the window, chin in hand, deep in thought.

"So, um, what should I make for lunch?" Takahashi tried after the unbearable minutes of awkwardness.

"Can you make oyakodon?" Onodera asked through his fingers.

Takano glanced back at the two conversing younger men. "Sure!" Takahashi exclaimed, his face breaking into a smile. He obviously thought the awkwardness had disintegrated at a word from Onodera.

But of course, Usami had to have a say. "That sounds good, nice idea, Onodera," he said. Takano saw him glance at the brunette through his rearview mirror.

_Tch._

Takano could feel his irritation reaching whole new levels. What was this man's _deal? _He almost felt like the sensei was deliberately sending glances Onodera's way—when Takano could see it.

"Ah, Onodera—"

"My mother used to make that dish, what nostalgia," Onodera murmured, but with the car so quiet, it seemed like he had deliberately interrupted Takano. He snapped out of his daze to blink a few times at his boss. "Oh, sorry, Takano-san. You were saying?"

It was times like these, when Onodera forgot to be hostile towards Takano, that he wished they were alone so he could simply ravish this man. But Usami and Takahashi were the obstacles, standing in the way of everything.

He could _feel _Usami's smirk.

"Well, once we get to the apartment, we don't have to make lunch right away. We can catch up for a while longer, Onodera," Usami added.

Takano, on the inside, was seething. But he had a plan. He didn't have to sit there and take Usami's shit like a lost puppy, he was a grown man and could think for himself. "Takahashi, I'll help you look for recipes online, so you have more to make than just oyakodon. I'm a better cook than Onodera, at least."

"I am a good cook!" Onodera protested, completely dragged out of his daze.

Takano smirked. "Only on Wednesdays*."

He watched as the brunette blushed in anger before turning to Takahashi and engaging the younger brunette in an intense conversation about cooking. His coworker was talking so fast, Takahashi looked flustered as he tried to keep up.

Usami glanced at Takano out of the corner of his eye, processing the situation. It was incredibly entertaining to watch the man struggle to keep his expression emotionless as he tried to fight his jealousy. Of course, he liked catching up with Onodera, but his boss was so amusing. It was almost as fun to watch as Misaki's fits of discomfort before and after sex.

But only almost.

They arrived at the apartment, and they all headed into Usami's room after going up the grand elevator. Takahashi was still chattering to Onodera about cooking, but it was at a normal conversation's pace. Takano was listening with little interest, more concerned about keeping Onodera occupied.

Usami smirked inwardly as he opened the door to his apartment. Onodera gave a little _ooh _at the sight of the roomy living space, but Usami knew that Onodera's place was far more extravagant, and his former editor was just being polite.

Usami knew that it was going to be a fun afternoon—welcome or not.

* * *

Really abrupt, rocky ending. Gomen!

* About that, it was a completely non-Takano, irrelevant comment by him, but I thought _"What the hell" _and just went with it! Plus, that kind of comment seems like it'd tick Ricchan off!

I seem to have developed a regular fandom! Yay for fandoms! Thank you for reviewing! I also seem to have sparked some controversy—or whatever you would like to call it—over Junjou and Sekaiichi! Actually, my first ever yaoi (like many, I would assume) was Junjou Romantica. I love them both!

Also, now this is way off topic, but I have recently watched an anime called Sword Art Online (I'd be surprised if you haven't heard of it, based on how much hype it got—not saying it deserved _all _if its praise but it's good nonetheless!) and instantly paired main character Kirito and Klein. Don't ask why—blame the yaoi fangirl-ness! To reach my point, I'm wondering how many of you would be interested if I wrote a fic about the pairing—I have no idea if I should ask this here or not, but here I am, asking it. The pairing has almost no recognition here on FanFiction—from what I've seen of a few weeks ago. Who knows what can happen in a few weeks here, though! So if you're interested, let me know!

Not to show any favoritism (I love you all!) but to point something out—**Fi Suki Saki**, I see that you want moar Misaki! The next chapter will be Usagi's point of view for the sake of letting each seme have their time to shine, but I will for sure make the chapter after next Misaki's POV! As I said, (I'm pretty sure I said this…xD too lazy to check) if your request is within relevance to the story, I will do my best to write whatever is requested.

So, to say something relevant to my story…I apologize if this chapter was a little meh, I actually had to rewrite it because the other storyline for the chapter was even more meh. I needed to write _something, _so I basically gave you a chapter full of fluff. But now I can actually get on with it, because they're at Usagi-san's apartment!

Ah, thank you for putting up with this giant AN!

Till next week!


	6. Chapter 6

Usami Akihiko no Baii

Chapter 6

* * *

Usami listened with faint interest as Onodera chirped about how nice the place was and Misaki replied with equal eagerness about how he agreed, but Usami knew it was because the younger boy took pride in his housekeeping skills.

"Well, Onodera, why don't we catch up while Takano and Misaki go look up recipes online—the laptops are upstairs, of course," Usami announced expertly when a small moment of silence had fallen.

"Ah, sure!" Of course his former editor would agree. He was never one to really go against the flow of things; for Usami, in any case.

But if Onodera came and went with the flow of things, his boss Takano surely was the opposite. "Why don't Misaki and I bring a laptop down here and we can all talk about how interesting our lives are together?"

It was to be expected that Takano would go on the defensive. Usami had won this round. He shrugged and replied, "I already know everything about Misaki. I'm rather interested in Onodera's new life as a manga editor." Takano had two choices, he could protest once again and make a fool of himself, or he could bow his head and follow Misaki upstairs.

After narrowing his eyes menacingly, Takano chose the latter and clomped up the stairs into the computer room that Misaki led him to.

"Ah—I'm so sorry, Usami-sensei, he's just really difficult all the time without thinking and…just, sorry!" Onodera cried, pulling the Kisa move from a few days ago and slapping his hands together as if he were praying for forgiveness. Usami chuckled at Onodera; he wasn't that different from Misaki after all.

"Well, let's catch up, Onodera," Usami replied, sitting down on one of his cream sofas and allowing Onodera to take the one across from him. They _were _about to talk about the past year, so sitting next to each other would be rather awkward, would it not?

"Right," Onodera said after sitting down. He was blushing now. "Er…I bet you want to know why it's shoujo manga, huh?" Without waiting for an answer, because it was obvious, he continued. "Well, let me tell you—it was a complete mistake! I wanted to work with literature at Marukawa as well! But I guess someone screwed up and I get it, we all make mistakes but of course it had to be me! Anyway, I just haven't…haven't had the chance to quit, I guess…"

Usami's deep lavender gaze unnerved Onodera to the point of shutting up. If Onodera was rambling, he certainly felt torn and confused about something. Whether that was his boss or the stress of shoujo manga itself, Usami had yet to pinpoint.

"But it's been a year, Onodera. You realize that, right?"

Onodera gripped his jeans tightly as his blush deepened to a crimson color. "T-time just flies away from you when you're a manga editor, you know? It-it's not just that either, I have to…er…I have to prove that I'm not worthless and…that if I quit, it's of my own accord and not because I suck at my job!" He looked proud that he'd stuttered his way to that conclusion.

But given that he hadn't yet mentioned a certain someone, it was definitely Takano's fault that Onodera hadn't quit wasting his talent on the shoujo manga department.

"Are you sure? It has nothing to do with harsh bosses, right?" Onodera jerked his head upright and stiffened. Bingo. "I mean, I've had stories I never wanted to finish, but my boss pushed and pushed and pushed until I could've broken to get me to finish." Aikawa came to mind when he spoke, and he fought back an amused grin.

"Er, well, no, I don't have any terrible bosses! And all my co-workers are nice, remember Kisa? Yeah—he's my co-worker!"

Usami lit a cigarette boredly, but couldn't help but feel a pang of pity when he noticed that Onodera's knees were shaking. Poor kid, he just hated being useless, and look where it had gotten him. However, Usami couldn't help but want to know.

"Who is Takano to you?" he puffed out along with a stream of gray smoke.

Onodera's jade eyes widened impossibly before he whipped his head down to gaze at his trembling knees. "T-Takano-san is…my boss…and nothing else!" he cried, sounding more like he wanted to assure himself of the fact than Usami. "He's…my…"

"Do…you love him?" Usami asked, his voice gentler now.

Onodera raised his head slowly to glance at Usami through watery eyes. He wasn't crying yet, but it was obvious that he was close. "Love Takano-san?" he asked, no longer stuttering. "I…do I love Takano-san…" He gripped his jeans even tighter. Usami was surprised he hadn't ripped the sturdy fabric already. "I don't know…maybe I do still love Takano-san?"

_Wait. Still? What does that mean?_

"Er…'still' love Takano? What do you mean by that?" Usami asked, his omniscient façade cracking.

Onodera looked to the side now. "I…we went out back in high school. I was…I had been completely in love with him. And then…"

_And then what?_

After a minute's silence, Usami pressed. "And then what?"

Onodera shrugged. "I was stupid. Shit happened and I ran away from it all. I transferred to a school in England and then moved back here, hoping I'd never see that man's face ever again. Though I had already forgotten it."

Usami blinked. He really didn't think he'd delve this far into Onodera's life, he just wanted to know why he was still working with shoujo manga. But now he knew that Onodera's boss was his lover back from high school. Well, old lover, in any case. Usami didn't know what to say, so he asked more questions.

"Why did you continue to work with the man you went out with in high school…when you found out it was him?"

Onodera shrugged again. Any resistance, wittiness he had mustered was gone. All he could do was answer accordingly. "He said…he told me he'd make me say that I loved him again. He'd make me fall in love with him again…"

For some reason, Usami felt like he was missing something. Just to be sure, he asked, "Is that it? That's the reason why you stayed?"

"He said he never stopped loving me. And I…I don't think I ever stopped loving him, either," Onodera replied, releasing his jeans from his death grip.

_Oh. _

Oh.

It was like a love story out of the very shoujo manga Onodera edited. If it were really like a shoujo manga, Onodera would get over the past and submit to Takano. If Onodera really were like Misaki, he would come around eventually. Emphasis on eventually, though, and maybe even longer since Onodera was older than Misaki and could think for himself a little more than the boy.

For a brief moment, Usami wished Takano luck and vowed that if the man ever did anything similar to what he had done to Onodera in high school, he'd kill him. But the thought quickly disappeared when Takano shouted from the computer room, "Dammit, we can't get on the Internet! I think you're laptop's screwed up, Usami!"

Onodera flinched and continued to bore a hole into Usami's wooden floors by gazing at it intensely. The man held back a chuckle and muttered to Onodera as he passed, "I don't think he'd hurt you again."

He felt Onodera's gaze switch from boring into the ground to searing into his back. Without faltering, Usami made his way upstairs and away from his former editor. He honestly didn't think that Takano would try to hurt Onodera again, because it seemed like he really loved the little brunette. And frankly, Kohinata-chan had always gotten on his nerves. If Onodera were to ever fall in love with anyone, Usami would want it to be with Takano. Even if the man was difficult to deal with, Onodera could be too, at some times. When he was trying his hardest to accomplish something, he tended to throw away his sense of social cues.

"I'll help Misaki, Takano," Usami said when he entered the dimly-lit room. Takano looked relieved at the words and brushed past Usami in a hurry.

"But we just got it to work!" Misaki pouted.

Usami wondered briefly if his lover and Takano had engaged themselves in a similar emotional conversation like he had with Onodera, but he doubted it. Misaki was chipper as ever. For a second, Usami hoped he hadn't put a damper on what was supposed to be their fun afternoon together, everyone's day off.

Suddenly, on impulse more than anything else, Usami pulled Misaki close and kissed him. It was simple, not passionate, not sexual, just a loving little kiss. He was glad that he had Misaki, and that Misaki loved him back, no matter what the brunette said. He was glad that he _knew _the one he loved shared mutual feelings.

"U-Usa—idiot Usagi! You really are an idiot! Let go of me!" Misaki cried.

Usami gave a small smile. "Shh, Onodera and Takano might hear you. Do you want your new friend to realize that you're his old writer's lover?"

Misaki froze. Usami wanted to laugh at his naiveté; it was completely obvious from the moment Onodera saw them in front of their apartment. "Just get _off _me, Usagi-san!" he whispered harshly, struggling to get away from his older lover.

"I love you, Misaki."

"I know that, get off me!"

"You love me, right, Misaki?"

The question caused the boy to glance back at Usami and abandon his attempts to escape his grasp. "Of-of course I do, idiot Usagi…" he replied, blushing slightly. "Why would…you ask that? You already know I love you…" His emerald eyes shifted to gaze at the floor as if it held the answer to the universe written on its wooden panels.

"I just…need to hear you say it more, Misaki. Because I would be content to only be able to say 'I love you, Misaki' for the rest of my life—forever, even."

Misaki's blush deepened. "Fine…I love you too, Usagi-san…" As if to get it over with before his adrenaline withered away, Misaki screwed his eyes shut and kissed Usami with equal gentleness as their last kiss. Usami smiled into it and closed his own eyes, savoring the taste of Misaki and breathing in his young lover's scent.

No, Takano wasn't difficult. He was suffering from the disease called "unrequited love", a sickness that could kill your insides and make you feel helpless. Hopeless. Takano was just using any tactic he could, to get back what he loved most.

Usami gave Takano an imaginary bow. If he were in that man's situation with Misaki, he didn't think he could survive. He needed Misaki, and if he couldn't have Misaki, he might as well not be here.

_Misaki. I hope you realize just how much I really love you. _

* * *

OK, GOMENNASAI FOR THE LONG WAIT! I think it's been, like, three weeks?! I HAVE AN EXCUSE, THOUGH! Yay for excuses. Well, first off, school's been a bitch to me as always but for some reason it's been even bitchier about everything lately. And my mom certainly isn't helping. Also, last week I lost my flash drive that had ALL my chapters on it, and I still can't find the damn thing. So I rewrote this today. I actually should've done it last week but I forget why I didn't…anyways, I am extremely sorry for the long wait.

I'm also sorry if the chapter's quality isn't as good as my last ones, or if it's too uncharacteristically emotional. I was listening to some music and all of it had depressing themes, so I guess I got just a little carried away…I got a little philosophical there at the end as well xD maybe it's because I just got finished watching Code Geass for the fifth time?

Big thanks to** xRinyukix **for waking me up with your review! It reminded me that there are people waiting for me to update, and just abandoning everyone would be cruel. Arigatougozaimasu! And I can't wait to read your own fic!

Anyway, I think I have betrayed my right to say "See you next week!" for now, so I shall use my other chatchphrase:

See you next time!

(Doesn't sound as cool… :/)


	7. Chapter 7

Takahashi Misaki to Takano Masamune no Baii

Chapter 7

* * *

After settling himself in next to Onodera-san's friend, Takano-san, Misaki glanced up at the intimidating older man. He was turning the laptop on with a bored expression plastered on his face, much similar to Usagi-san's whenever he was doing something he disliked. Like stopping short from sex with Misaki from too many protests to be enjoyable, or when Misaki rambled on about how much he loved The Kan and Ijuuin-sensei.

Misaki realized that he was still staring awkwardly at Takano-san's face, and quickly turned away, blushing slightly. Onodera-san sure knew a bunch of good-looking people; Kisa-san and Yukina-san from before were both extremely pretty in their own ways.

_And Onodera is good-looking himself, too! Some people have all the luck… _Misaki grinned slightly at the thought.

"Damn, this laptop is slow," Takano-san muttered, breaking the slowly growing awkward silence.

"Ah—we could use a different one, Usag—Usami-san has a bunch of them lying around here," Misaki quickly replied, preparing to get up from the computer chair that was squeezed under the desk along with Takano-san's.

But the dark-haired man flagged Misaki back down. "It's fine." He was beginning to look annoyed, not just bored.

The smaller man plopped back down into his seat and asked, "Is something the matter…Takano-san?" For some reason, he felt uncomfortable saying the man's name. It was a foreign movement on his tongue.

"Nothing in particular," Takano-san replied elusively. It was so obvious that it was a lie, but Misaki shut up, realizing that he was treading on thin ice that was thinning still with each word he spoke.

"Uh, so," Misaki continued, ignoring his gut instinct that screamed for him to shut up (because that just wasn't Misaki, was it?), "you're Onodera-san's boss?"

Takano-san tossed him an unnerving stare that looked more like a glare than anything else. "Yeah, I'm the Emerald editor-in-chief. Why?"

"Ah—well, um, just wondering."

And once again, silence engulfed the room. Misaki noticed for the first time that he had forgotten to turn the lights on, and the only source of light was dimly filtering through the blinds of the one window the computer room offered.

"Takahashi."

"Ah, yes?"

"Do you know anything about the time when Onodera was Usami's editor?"

The question caught Misaki off-guard. He didn't, in fact, know anything about Usagi-san's past career. He'd read some of his lover's books, but didn't really inquire about the past in which the author had written them. "N-no…I don't. I'm sorry. I'm sure Onodera-san was a good editor, in any case," Misaki added, not quite sure of what to say.

Takano-san sighed. "Of course he was…I'm just worried that he doesn't like working with shoujo manga and really wants to quit because he hates the job, and not because of…" he narrowed his eyes and trailed off, tipping his head back to gaze that the ceiling.

Misaki wanted to ask "Because of what?" but he was afraid of cracking the ice he was doing so well treading over. So he just replied lamely, "Oh."

Takano-san didn't take his eyes off the ceiling. "That guy…he can be such an impulsive idiot sometimes."

Misaki mimed Takano-san and stared up at the plain, eggshell ceiling. "Are you and Onodera-san good friends, Takano-san?"

A pause. The pause strangely reminded Misaki of the ceiling—empty, colorless. "Yeah. We've been friends for a long time…" he finally replied, but Misaki noticed that there was something different about his tone. He turned his head sideways to steal a glance at Takano-san, only to see the man's eyes narrowed not from irritation, but in a sentimental way. Seeing the seemingly hostile, guarded Takano-san look vulnerable made Misaki blush slightly. It reminded him of the times Usagi-san would truly smile at him, and break his expression free from his usual stoic appearance.

"You know, I was surprised that Onodera-san was working with shoujo manga, but you're even bigger of a surprise!" Misaki rambled, trying to keep the unbearable silence from returning. The laptop was slowly inching its way to turning on.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Ah, sorry! It was a compliment," Misaki laughed, scratching the back of his head unconsciously. "It's just that you seem like you could be doing anything you want, not just working with manga."

Takano-san paused at that. "I'm extremely glad that I chose to work with shoujo manga," he finally replied, sitting up and placing his chin on the heel of his hand. "I wouldn't be where I am today, or know the people I know now if I hadn't."

_Well, that goes without saying, doesn't it? _Misaki thought, but didn't dare voice his opinion aloud.

"Anyway, this damn thing won't start fast enough," Takano-san grumbled, tapping the laptop with an index finger. It had turned on and they were currently trying to get on the Internet, but it didn't seem to be connecting fast enough.

"Well, we could get another one like I—"

"Dammit, we can't get on the Internet! I think your laptop's screwed up, Usami!" Takano-san shouted suddenly, stunning Misaki for a moment. When he finally realized what was happening, Usagi-san was in the doorway and Takano-san was brushing past him, relief shining in his dark eyes. He saw Usagi-san whisper something, but didn't quite catch what his older lover had said.

"But we just got it to work!" Misaki complained, slamming the laptop shut. He pouted for a moment, and when he snapped out of it, Usagi-san was pulling him close—connecting their lips for a fleeting moment. Misaki widened his eyes, and protested fiercely at Usagi-san.

Usami just grinned back and hushed him, suggesting that Onodera-san and Takano-san might hear them from downstairs.

Misaki sighed. "Just get off me, Usagi-san!" Misaki returned sharply.

"I love you, Misaki."

_Ah—idiot! _

"I know that, get off me!"

"You love me, right, Misaki?"

Misaki stopped struggling to escape from Usagi-san's firm grasp and stared at his lover with a blank look. Hadn't he told this man more than enough times (for Misaki) that he loved him? Enough so that Usagi-san didn't have to worry? Why was he acting paranoid now? "O-of course I do, idiot Usagi… Why would… you ask that?"

Usagi-san confirmed Misaki's doubts by replying that he simply wanted to hear Misaki say those three little words more often.

"Fine," Misaki consented, and confessed just before pulling Usagi-san into his own gentle kiss. The cold temperature of Usagi-san's lips made his own spark like fire, and he loved the feeling. It was different from the spark of when they kissed in bed, it was simpler and full of love they couldn't put into words.

_Idiot Usagi-san. Of course I'll always love you...because the love I have for you is special, _Misaki caught himself thinking this as they pulled away from each other, jade meeting soft violet. Usagi-san smiled that smile Misaki loved, making him blush. Once more, Usagi-san pulled Misaki in, but for a hug this time rather than a kiss.

"I guess we better get downstairs, huh? We have guests waiting," Usagi-san said, getting up from the seat Takano-san had been sitting in only minutes before.

"Right!" Misaki chirped, jumping up from his own chair and following Usagi-san out of the room.

* * *

So. Err…sorry if this chapter wasn't full of plot, I feel like I just handed everyone a bunch of filler crap. I just felt like it was important to explain Takano and Misaki's moments up in the computer room together instead of leaving it a mystery ^^ But next chapter I'll have to look up how to make oyakodon, because I have no earthly idea how xD

By the way, I have recently been OBSESSED with the Kisa x Yukina pairing, so I decided to write a side story about it. Kisa Shouta & Yukina Kou no Baii ^^ (original, no?) it takes place a little while after Onodera and the gang leave "the bookstore" (I now know that the name of the store is "Marimo Books", but I didn't know at the time and throughout the whole fic I refer to it as "the bookstore".)

Also, since I actually attempted some smut again for that fic, I'm actually considering doing that for this story! Which means I'll have to change the rating but no matter.

Gomen if there are any plot errors in this chapter! Also, sorry for the errors last chapter that were pointed out to me; I should've noticed the Emerald/Marukawa error, but I honestly thought Onodera fled to America O.o I'll have to go find the episode/chapter it clarified this in! Nonetheless, I thank you for pointing that out to me,**xRinYukix**!

Edit: Ah, and thank you for the amazing reviews! Reading them really inspires me to write these chapters (: arigatougozaimasu!

I think I have the confidence in my time management skills to say this once again:

See you next week!


	8. Chapter 8

Onodera Ritsu to Takano Masamune no Baii

Chapter 8

* * *

Onodera was still blushing furiously when he heard a set of feet come clomping down Usami-sensei's staircase. Thinking it was his former author again, Onodera cried, "It's not like that!"

"Not like what?"

Onodera gasped when he realized that the person standing at the base of the stairs was not Usami-sensei, but none other than his boss.

"T-Takano-san!" Onodera stuttered, turning around and blushing an impossibly deeper shade of red. "It's not like I don't want to help make the oyakodon, or anything! I'm an amazing cook, you know!" he continued, giving himself an internal pat on the back for the smooth cover-up.

But no matter how smooth Onodera was, Takano-san was always one step ahead. "Right. Now what's really not like what?" he asked, his voice no longer curious but stone-cold and had an undertone of "don't fuck with me."

"Well—um—it's not like you're entitled to know what we talked about—"

"Yes I am, Onodera. _What _isn't like _what?" _Takano-san growled, making a move toward the shorter man.

"Don't come any closer—"

"Then tell me."

Onodera's eyes widened as he realized that he wasn't getting out of this one. He looked at anywhere but Takano-san, backing up as Takano-san advanced towards him. "Err, well, it's not like—it's not like you and I have anything going on between us!"

That stopped Takano-san.

"Why would your old author want to know if there was anything going on between us?" Takano-san asked, narrowing his eyes. Onodera gulped.

"Um, well, we were just talking and I guess…um…" Onodera scratched his head frantically. His mind was completely blank, he could barely remember how to talk.

While Onodera was in a state of panic, Takano-san took the chance to advance to practically right on top of Onodera. By the time the younger man realized what had happened, it was too late. Takano-san had a hold of Onodera's wrist and was pulling him closer. Before Onodera could shove him away, Takano-san locked Onodera in a kiss.

"Mmm—Takano-san—st—" Onodera murmured into the kiss, but Takano-san didn't let up, as usual. But Onodera's state of mind was so scrambled that he didn't even think about the chance that Takahashi-kun or Usami-sensei could come downstairs at any moment and catch them together.

Somehow Takano-san had pinned Onodera down on the couch, all the while still kissing him, and was now running his hand up under Onodera's black sweatshirt and over an already hardened nipple.

Snapping out of his daze, Onodera snapped his head to the side, ripping his lips away from Takano-san's. "Stop! What if—" Takano-san let go of Onodera's wrist to turn his head back to him, and took the chance to kiss Onodera with his tongue. The smaller man tried to force Takano-san's tongue out of his mouth, but ended up tangling them together.

Finally, Onodera found the strength to force Takano-san's hand out of his shirt and push the bigger man off of him. "Get off me!" Onodera cried when his lips were free. He wiped a string of saliva off his chin as he panted from the heat of the kiss. Takano-san just gazed at him with unreadable, dark eyes instead of making another move for his first love. Suddenly, Onodera heard a thump at the top of the stairs. Feeling his stomach drop to his feet, he whipped around to see none other than Takahashi-kun standing there, a cell phone at his feet.

"T-Takahashi-kun?!" Onodera screeched, clutching his stomach in fear of throwing up. "Y-you—were you there—um—I can ex—"

"Oh, so we're allowed to do that now?" Usami-sensei appeared behind the shocked Takahashi-kun, and gazed down at the pair sitting on the couch. "Alright then," he said before turning Takahashi-kun around and locking him into a kiss as well.

_"What?!" _Onodera screamed, accidentally shoving himself off the couch in his shock and falling onto the hardwood floor. _Usami-sensei—Sensei is—_

"How are you surprised?" Takano-san muttered.

"U-Usami-sen…sei…" Onodera stuttered, not even bothering to pick himself up from the floor.

When Takahashi-kun realized what was happening himself, he widened his big jade eyes and pushed Usami-sensei away from him. "Usagi-san! What the heck are you _doing _with company over?" he shrieked, sounding just as shocked at what happened as Onodera.

"Well, our _company _was just doing the same thing," Usami-sensei replied, glancing down at Takano-san with a smirk planted on his face. "If it's fine for them why wouldn't it be fine for us?"

"Wait, that is _not _fine with me!" Onodera shot back, his blush returning. "I was just forced into that!"

Takano-san sighed and rolled his eyes. "Really, Onodera? You didn't seem to be trying that hard to resist. Are you sure you were forced into anything?"

Onodera glared daggers through a blush at the dark-haired man. _"Yes, _I am absolutely completely positive that I was just forced onto the couch and—and—" _Shit, I can't think!_

"And what?" Takano-san inquired.

"We all know what happened," Onodera muttered, standing up and staring down at the floor.

"Well, I don't see a problem with it. What about you, Misaki?" Usami-sensei commented.

Takahashi-kun blushed. "W-well…um…" He seemed hesitant to say anything. "I think we should all get ready to make the oyakodon, what do you think, Onodera-san?" He scratched the back of his head while laughing awkwardly, his words practically screaming, "Let's just drop the subject and do something else that doesn't include anything like what just happened!"

"No, I don't think I'm hungry for oyakodon right now, on second thought," Takano-san replied, placing his chin on the heel of his hand. "What about you, Usami?"

"I think I just lost my appetite for that as well," the silver-haired man replied. He smirked at Takano-san, and the man mirrored the look.

Onodera knew that look. _Oh. Crap._

Quickly, the brunette made his way to the kitchen. "Well what else can we make? Haha, I'm so hungry right now! Takahashi-kun, why don't you teach me to make something simple? If they're not hungry for oyakodon we could make—"

"Jeez, Onodera, learn to read the mood," Takano-san interrupted, turning to gaze at the furiously blushing man.

"I'm with Onodera-san!" Takahashi-kun quickly agreed, leaping down the stairs two steps at a time. Usami-sensei followed him down at a normal pace.

"What should we do, Takano? They don't seem to get it," Usami-sensei sighed, following Takahashi-kun into the kitchen. Takano-san gave a sly grin and followed the man into the kitchen.

"What should we do indeed?" Takano-san asked, leaning against the counter.

_"Takahashi-kun, I don't think we have the ingredients for anything right now! Let's go buy something!" _Onodera announced, even though he hadn't so much as looked in the pantry.

On the contrary, Onodera was quite sure of what was about to happen, and he was _not _going to let that happen.

_I mean, I just found out that Takahashi-kun and Usami-sensei are…and they just saw Takano-san and I…_

"Ah, it appears that we don't! To the supermarket we'll go, then!" Takahashi-kun agreed, but before he could go anywhere, Usami-sensei grabbed his wrist and Takano-san quickly grabbed Onodera's own.

"But you haven't even checked to see if we have anything," Usami-sensei protested, his violet eyes unnerving.

"I don't think—"

"Maybe there's something upstairs," Usami-sensei continued as if Takahashi-kun had never spoken. He swiftly scooped the small boy into his arms and began to walk towards the stairs, while Takahashi-kun protested and struggled all the way.

"It'd be rude to ignore our hosts, Onodera," Takano-san said, grinning at the smaller man.

"T-Takano-san! You're kidding, right? Please tell me you're joking!" Onodera shrieked, trying to pull himself away from the other man's death grip on his wrist. Ignoring Onodera, Takano-san made quick work of dragging Onodera along to follow Usami-sensei and Takahashi-kun up the stairs.

_You're kidding me! We're not seriously doing…doing…_that, _are we?! Ten minutes ago I didn't even know that Takahashi-kun and Usami-sensei were together, and they didn't know that Takano-san and I…you're joking, right, Takano-san?!_

* * *

Um. So. I think the rating might change. Like next week. Sorry if this chapter wasn't put together very well, or rushed...I'm so tired right now…but I wanted to get this chapter in before the start of the new year, so here you go!

**Fi Suki Saki**, I like to think of taking your idea a step further xD Your review is actually the reason I came up with this. Haha ^^ but anyway, I love it when I get prompt reviews. I get writer's block like a bad cold that just keeps coming back… (Yeah, remember the time I didn't come back for three whole freaking weeks? That was like the flu.) I love the ideas in these reviews. I actually want to incorporate some other Junjou characters into this now!

So thank you all for the reviews, I love them and seriously never get tired of rereading them! (I hope that's not weird…?) ^^' So anyway, thank you for reading so far, and another big thanks to those who have reviewed!

See you next week!


	9. Chapter 9

Minna no Baii

Chapter 9

* * *

Misaki and Onodera found themselves strewn across a very large bed, which Misaki knew to be Usagi-san's bed. He glanced fearfully at Onodera, knowing full well what was about to happen if they didn't do anything—and Onodera-san mirrored the look.

_Damn, he has to start _this _in front of my new friend, and my old author?! _Onodera thought, beginning to struggle—but Takano-san had quite a good grip on the smaller man's wrists.

"What the hell, Takano—" Onodera was cut off by Takano-san's lips sealing his own. Since Onodera was speaking, Takano-san took advantage of the opportunity to slip his tongue into Onodera's mouth.

Misaki blushed as he watched Takano-san and Onodera-san kiss. Suddenly, he felt a cool hand brush across his cheek. He glanced up to see Usagi-san—already stripped of his shirt. Misaki's eyes widened, the full reality of the situation falling down on him full-force. This definitely wasn't a joke—Takano-san and Usagi-san were both serious.

"Um, Usagi-san…"

Usagi-san smirked. "Why should we let them have all the fun?" he asked, leaning down and kissing Misaki lightly on the lips. When he pulled back, Misaki blushed deeply. Usagi-san narrowed his eyes slightly before suddenly ripping Misaki's shirt up and off the slim boy's frame.

"Wh-wait, what are you—"

Usagi-san silenced Misaki with his lips and tongue, all the while fumbling with the zipper of Misaki's jeans. Misaki gasped when he felt his pants sliding off, guided by Usagi-san's cool hand.

"Usa—" Misaki was cut off by another assault from Usagi-san's tongue. He felt his blush spread all throughout his body—particularly down in his groin area. He gasped into the hot kiss, and locked the hair at the back of Usagi-san's head in a death grip, pulling the older man closer. Misaki could see Usagi-san's eyes widen at the aggression, but only for a moment until he screwed his eyes shut as Usagi-san slide his fingers lower to pay attention to Misaki's growing problem.

Onodera could feel himself moaning into the kiss and his face erupted in flames. He didn't want to admit that he was turned on by Takano-san, but here he was, growing hard because of his boss. He tried to push Takano-san away, but his resistance was already rapidly fading. He was paralyzed when Takano-san took his own shirt off after doing away with Onodera's, then moved to take care of his pants.

When Onodera was completely stripped of clothing, he regained his sense of reason. "Takano-san, stop, we're hardly in the kind of place to—to—" Onodera stared wide-eyed as Usami-sensei grabbed Takano-san's chin and lurched his head forward to kiss the dark haired man.

_What the hell?! _Onodera screamed inwardly, jaw dropping.

Onodera heard Takahashi-kun squeak and glanced over at the boy—he was staring at the two with a shocked expression as well. Onodera felt something burn deep inside of him—making him want to tear Usami-sensei away from Takano-san, but he simply lay there and watched as Usami-sensei pulled away from Takano-san.

Usami smirked. "Well Onodera, if you don't want that to happen again…" The silver-haired man leaned in close—too close—to Onodera and whispered, "Don't act like you don't love him, Onodera…"

The brunette shivered at the warm sensation of Usami-sensei's breath on the bare skin of his neck. He felt Takano-san tense above him, and Usami-sensei quickly retreated back to Misaki.

"Now what do we do with you? Your eyes are shining with jealousy," Usami commented down to Misaki. Usami started to kiss down Misaki's neck and down his chest. His lips reached an erect nipple and began to suck when—

_Ding-dong._

Everyone froze. Usami released Misaki's nipple and glanced at Takano, who was already staring at him. "Who the hell could that be?" Takano asked, sounding not at all pleased.

Usami shrugged. "Maybe Aikawa…" he mumbled.

_Ding-dong._

"W-well, we can't just ignore them, can we now?" Onodera spoke up, already reaching for his pants. Takano reluctantly moved off his first love, allowing Onodera to redress himself. Usami, after a moment's contemplation, did the same. Misaki scurried away to pick up his clothing items.

"Well, Usami, let's go greet them…" Takano muttered, pulling his shirt back on. He waited at the door while Usami straightened his clothes out, then both left the room to let their lovers dress.

When they got to the door, the person was now repeatedly punching the doorbell to get their attention. Usami rolled his eyes and Takano sighed, but nonetheless, Usami opened the door to his apartment. When he saw who was behind the door, his eyes widened.

"H-Hiroki?" Usami asked, staring at the little brunette that was glaring back up at him.

"I. Am. Here. For. My. Books!" Hiroki growled, shoving Usami aside and barging into the apartment—instantly making his way up the stairs. It took them both a moment to realize what was happening, but by then, Hiroki was already at Usami's door.

"Damn you Akihiko…" Hiroki mumbled as he opened the door. He reflexively flipped the light on, and was about to step in to search for his books that would surely be strewn around his friend's room, like they always were. Only he didn't see any books, but two half-clothed boys sitting next to each other in Akihiko's bed—blushing.

Blushing. With only their pants on—no, the smaller one was still zipping his pants up.

The smaller one…Hiroki dropped the book bag he had been carrying. It was Takahashi Misaki, of all damn people.

"K-K-Kami…Kami…Kamijou-sensei?!" Misaki shrieked, immediately throwing a blanket on top of him to cover his bare upper body—and his deep red blush. Onodera did the same, but poked his head over the top of his blanket to gaze at the man. He looked as shocked as they did.

"T-Takahashi?" he stuttered. "I must be seeing things—you're not…you can't be Takahashi Misaki, right?" He barked out a laugh. "Oh, I see, I'm dreaming—"

"Hiroki, shut the door!" Usami shouted, finally reaching the top of the stairs with Takano hot on his heels. But he knew it was in vain; Hiroki had already seen more than enough.

"Oh hey, Akihiko, this is a pretty realistic dream!" Hiroki said, glancing at Usami.

Usami sighed. He didn't want to do this, but it'd just give him crap later on if he let Hiroki believe this was a dream. "This isn't a dream, Hiroki. Err…well, Misaki is…" He hesitated. How would Hiroki react to his friend being in a relationship with his childhood friend? "Misaki is my lover." _I hope this doesn't cause problems for Misaki…_

But to Usami's surprise, Hiroki laughed. "Right. This is a whacky dream!" He glanced around Usami's shoulder to gaze at Takano. "And who's this?"

"I'm Onodera's lover. The other guy in there," Takano immediately answered, nodding to the open door. Onodera was still watching from under his blanket, and even Takahashi-kun had poked his head over his own covering.

Hiroki glanced back at the two, who both flinched under his confused gaze. "…Oh. Um…so this isn't a dream?"

"No."

"And…my you're going out with my _student._"

"He was my lover before he was your student."

Hiroki blushed and looked away. "Oh…I see. Well, err, you can keep the books...I'll just stop by some other time to pick them up! Bye!" And with that, Hiroki shoved his way past Usami and fled out the door.

Usami sighed. "Well that's a way to kill the mood…" he muttered.

Takano nodded and leaned against the wall. "I think…we should go home. What do you say, Usami?" Takano said, referring to Onodera.

Usami shrugged. "I guess. I don't think we'll get away with anything at this point…"

Takano nodded and walked into the room. After a brief argument with Onodera, they both left after saying their awkward goodbyes.

After the door finally shut for the last time that night, Usami looked to Misaki. The smaller boy was still blushing from the embarrassment of having his college professor see him like _that. _Usami felt his face fall, and he pulled Misaki towards him for a hug.

"Usagi-san…" Misaki whispered, but didn't resist his lover's hold. Everything had just happened so fast—finding out that Onodera was also going out with another man, his teacher barging in to see him redressing after nearly being made love to…this Saturday had just turned out to be a huge mess.

"I'm sorry…I love you, Misaki."

Misaki blushed. "Sh-shut up…I…I love you too, idiot Usagi…"

* * *

After reaching his own apartment building with Takano-san, Onodera tried to escape up the elevator alone, but Takano-san stopped the doors just in time and made his way on—as usual. A deafening silence fell upon them, and Onodera fidgeted in discomfort.

"Are you still worried about that Hiroki guy?" Takano-san asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

Onodera flinched, not mentally prepared to talk with Takano-san yet. "Umm…well, I don't really know the guy, I guess…? So…" He clenched his fist. _Dammit, I have no idea what I'm trying to say!_

"Well, don't worry. As long as you love me, it doesn't matter who knows." Onodera gasped when he felt Takano-san wrap his arms around his abdomen, and whisper into his ear, "I'll keep waiting for you, Ritsu."

Onodera's face erupted into flames, and he suddenly felt weaker than he had been in Usami-sensei's bed. _Takano-san…he really loves me…_

But he just couldn't say it back. He simply stood there, letting Takano-san's warmth seep through his sweatshirt and into him. He felt like he was about to fall asleep, until…

"Well, I can't wait till our next day off."

* * *

NOTE: The names may have gotten a little confusing, which I apologize for. It was kind of like a third person omniscient POV, so whenever the POV focused on a character, I would use the names they called other characters...sorry if that's confusing as well ^^'

SO. Very abrupt djuiwfhduis ending. Gomen…I'm indecisive about whether or not to continue this…I mean, the whole story WAS about a single Saturday, but I could easily continue with another day off involving more couples. I could also start a completely new story. Opinions and/or suggestions on this are very welcome~

A big thank you to **Roocie** for giving me the idea of Hiroki barging in on them! The thought never really crossed my mind till I read your review xD

As you've probably noticed, the rating didn't change at all! Some of you might have wanted a sex scene but…I just felt like it didn't really fit with the whole plot of the story as of then. My apologies for leading some of you on that I was going to have a lemon scene—really, I was planning on it, and halfway through writing it I just felt awkward and thought that it didn't go at all.

And one last thing, a **HUGE** thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, and followed! I really loved every notification I got, and you're probably the reason I ever finished this story! I mean, if an author doesn't feel like his/her works are appreciated, it'd be very hard for them to continue writing. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Since I'm still contemplating on whether or not to continue, I'll leave it at this:

Arigatougozaimasu!


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Misaki's Affair

* * *

_Hello~ I'm back! Yes, I've decided to continue Onodera Ritsu to Takahashi Misaki no Baii! Why? Well, most of you seemed rather satisfied with the ending, however, this whole week I was dying to write more for this fic! And not just for the oh-so-noble reason of "the fans needed me" (like I said, most people were fine with the ending, which is okay with me! ^^) but more like…I was dying to write. I have also written the next five chapters' plots while sitting in English class xD so yeah, definitely continuing this~! _

_I also want to incorporate more prompts that I was given via reviews, but just wasn't able to fit into this story ^^ so again, if anyone has any prompts at all, maybe even a stupid idea, let me hear 'em! I'm not so good at coming up with the comic relief angle of my stories, so funny ideas as well as reasonable, romantic ones are very welcome!_

_Well, enough of my excited babbling. Thank you for reading!_

* * *

Misaki pouted all the way back to Usagi-san's apartment, disregarding the curious looks he earned from passers-by. He sighed, and watched with a bored expression as his breath clouded before his eyes.

Takahashi Misaki was truly, utterly bored.

When he finally made his way up to Usagi-san's apartment, all he could do was simply flop down on the couch, without even turning the TV on. He didn't even have the will to cook, or clean up the mess Usagi-san had left behind from barely finishing one of his manuscripts on time. This morning had taken his mind off of his boredom, since Usagi-san had been a nightmare from two all-nighters in a row. But now Usagi-san was sleeping, and he had nothing to take his mind off of this dead feeling.

_What the hell am I missing?! _Misaki screamed inwardly in frustration, not being able to pinpoint the source of his boredom. University wasn't that bad today; he had talked with Sumi-senpai about going to see a horror movie next weekend.

_Wait…weekend?_

Ah, right. Last Saturday, the day he had spent with Onodera-san and Takano-san.

This boredom he was feeling…was actually loneliness?

_No no no…I mean, I just met Onodera-san and Takano-san, how can I want to see them again so badly? _Misaki thought, tossing and turning himself around on the couch. Somewhere along the way, he had picked up a couch cushion and had hugged it to his chest.

_I mean, we just met, we're not even that good of friends…_ But then again, to know that the person who used to edit Usagi-san's books was also going out with another man was too big of a coincidence to disregard. Also, what Usagi-san had told him about Onodera-san and Takano-san's past relationship intrigued him. He still had a whole load of things to ask Onodera-san.

_I…I wonder if he's at Marukawa? _After the thought took him by surprise, he couldn't get it out of his mind. He wanted to go see when Onodera-san's next free day was, and book it before anyone else…but then, wouldn't that creep the older man out? He was a working man in any case, and in his eyes Misaki might seem like a stupid little university student.

_Well, maybe so, but I don't think Onodera-san would think like that! _Misaki blushed. He was completely conflicted about asking another _guy _if he wanted to hang out. And that _guy _was already going out with someone.

Even if that someone was _another _guy.

Misaki clenched his fists and shot up off the couch. _Whatever, I don't care anymore, I'll just ask him!_

* * *

But when he finally got to Marukawa Shoten, he had no idea where the hell Onodera-san was.

_If I remember correctly, he said he was in the shoujo manga department…but which one? I mean, there's obviously more than one, but—_

Just then, Misaki heard a shout and footsteps clomping down a hallway. The voice seemed very familiar, yet Misaki couldn't quite remember the owner of the voice.

Just then, a tall, raven-haired man rounded the corner of a hallway, speaking angrily into a cell phone. Misaki gasped. It was Takano-san!

"You're coming over tonight and that's final. Don't make me break into your—" Takano-san cut off when he noticed Misaki. His dark eyes widened, temporarily distracting him from his argument. An instant later, he growled into the receiver, "Just wait for me until I get home, and really, don't make me break into your apartment." And with that, he slapped his phone shut.

"U-uh, good evening, Takano-san…?" Misaki mumbled trying to hide his awkward blush. That was obviously Onodera-san.

"What're you doing here?" Takano-san asked, leaning against the wall and pulling out a cigarette from his coat pocket. He seemed to always have one of those at the ready.

Misaki fidgeted. "Uhm…well, I uh…was wondering if Onodera-san was still here, but I-I guess he's not in?" he asked, stuffing his hands into his own coat pockets. _What an idiot, I shouldn't have come in the first place!_

"Why'd you want to talk with Onodera?" Takano-san inquired, sounding slightly interested.

"W-well, I just think that we're kind of…like…friends, now, so I just wanted to chat…"

A pause. It only lasted a few seconds, but to Misaki, that awkward silence seemed to stretch on for eternity.

"How's Usami doing?" Takano-san suddenly asked, blowing up a puff of smoke into the air. Misaki was used to this smell from Usami smoking all the time—which Misaki had recently started pleading with him not to.

"Err, fine, I guess?" Misaki replied, though his reply sounded more like a question than anything else.

Takano-san nodded. "That's good. Onodera wouldn't shut up for the longest time about you two. He was talking with Kisa today about Usami. That guy's really something, making Onodera fangirl like that." He narrowed his eyes. "Anyway. I guess I'll have to tell Onodera that you wanted to see him. He'll be in later tomorrow, so just come in then. Later." And with that, Takano-san began to leave the building, before a certain boy called out to him again.

"Um, Takano-san!" Misaki called. When the taller man turned around, he continued, "I—I was wondering if you and Onodera-san would like to have another get-together or something this weekend…?" _Oh, crap, that sounded really stupid! "Get-together"? What the heck am I thinking?!_

He blushed when he noticed Takano-san chuckling. "This weekend? I'll see what I can do…that is, I'll have to get Onodera to agree as well." He raised a hand. "See ya, Takahashi." (A/N: Ugh. OOC partings…I have no idea how to make Takano sound cool while saying bye. Maybe he just shouldn't say anything…)

"B-Bye!" Misaki replied, waving in return, a stupid smile plastered over his blush. _I can't believe it! He's actually gonna ask Onodera-san? Wow, this is just amazing!_

With that, Misaki left Marukawa, feeling at ease and not at all bored. He practically skipped his way to the subway station, remembering that eventful day when Onodera-san had called him a taxi to take him home.

Just then, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He answered it without looking at the caller ID, but immediately regretted not doing so when he realized who it was.

"Hi, Takahashi-kun!"

_Oh…crap._

It was Ijuuin-sensei.

"Ah, h-hello, Ijuuin-sensei! Wh-what's up?" Misaki laughed awkwardly, failing in his attempt to cover up his more-than-awkward greeting.

"Oh, I was just wondering if you wanted to, well, I don't know, come over and get a first look at the next chapter of The Kan! It's coming out next week, but I'd like for you to be my first fan to see it!"

Misaki's mind immediately went blank.

_A first…a…the first fan to…OH MY GOD! _

_"YES, I would love to!" _Misaki shouted into the receiver, forgetting everything that made him wary of Ijuuin-sensei and only thinking of his love for his favorite manga. "I'll be over right away!" He slammed his phone shut, only to quickly open it again and send a hasty mail to Usagi-san.

_I'm headed over Ijuuin-sensei's to read the next chapter of The Kan. I'll be home later than expected. Cya!_

_-Misaki_

With that, he shut his phone again, shoving it in his pocket after turning it on silent and packing himself into the crowded subway—headed _away _from Usagi-san's apartment.

* * *

Sooooooo I'm sorry if it seemed really OOC, or if I got any canon points wrong. I really can't keep track of the time in Junjou Romantica—I can't tell when a month goes by or a year in-between chapters, but I'm pretty sure everything's good to go as far as canon goes. (If there's something wrong with the canon side of my plot, please let me know and I'll fix it as soon as possible~!)

And by the way, in my fic, this is after Ijuuin tells Misaki that he likes him and wants to make Misaki like him back—but before Ijuuin kisses Misaki on the head. Which to be honest, I love Usagi and Misaki TO DEATH, but Ijuuin was just an ingenious creation by Nakamura-sensei. Kudos to you, Sensei! Ijuuin is a worthy rival for Usagi-san—though if Ijuuin gets too close to Misaki, I'd probably get just as mad as Usami xD

WOW major fangirl rant. Anyways, I'm happy to hear any suggestions, comments, tips, corrections, or whatever the hell you want to say to me ^^ thank you all so much for putting up with me and…

See you next week!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Ritsu's Affair

* * *

Onodera cringed when he heard his cell ring for the second time that evening. He did _not_ want anything to do with Takano-san this evening, and he'd very well appreciate it if the older man would simply leave him alone.

But as the phone continued to ring, and continued to gradually become more and more of a nuisance to Onodera, he picked it up. "What do you want, Takano-san?!"

"Ah—Onodera-kun?"

Onodera froze. Since _when _did Takano-san call him Onodera-_kun?_

"It's me, Haitani."

Onodera let a silence drag on for a few moments, before he gasped and stared at the caller ID in disdain. Indeed, it was Haitani-san. He couldn't believe how stupid he was; how could he not simply take a glance at the caller ID before picking up the damn phone?

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out drinking tonight. I know it's pretty sudden, but we talked about it the other day, and I wanted to have a chat with you. What do you say?" the man asked, laughter eminent in his voice. Onodera blushed deeply at his stupidity.

"Ah, well—you see, I—" _Wait a second. If you accept, there'd be no way Takano-san could find you because you won't tell him. So why the hell not? Yeah. I don't want any part of that man today. _"Um…sure, Haitani-san. Just tell me where we're going to meet."

* * *

Onodera arrived at the bar with a few minutes to spare. He quickly turned off his phone in fear of Takano-san calling him, and Haitani-san then urging him to answer, since the man was so strangely polite all the time.

When his phone finally powered off, he shoved it into his coat pocket and waited. It was a cold winter night, the kind of night you'd want to see the stars in, but the city smog made the sky appear jet black.

"Sorry, have you been waiting long?"

Onodera jerked his head around to see Haitani-san walking up to him, also dressed in a coat and long jeans. He didn't look nearly as cold as Onodera was, though.

"Ah, no, I just arrived here myself," Onodera replied.

For some reason, that made Haitani-san smile. "Well, why don't we go inside? It's freezing out here."

Onodera nodded thankfully. "Yes, please."

Soon they were seated at a counter, and Onodera was downing one beer after another. Only on his second glass, he wasn't that drunk when Haitani-san asked, "So. I'm kind of curious…what's your relationship with Takano, if I may ask?"

Onodera's head snapped up in shock._ Shit, he remembers…_ Onodera really wished he hadn't snapped into the receiver earlier before he was sure that it was Takano-san on the line. It could've been anyone, even An-chan or his mother. "O-our relationship, you ask? Err…well, isn't it obvious? We're coworker and boss, haha…" he replied weakly. He knew that Haitani-san was smart enough to see through his rather transparent bluff, but that was all he had. In any case, he was beginning to feel dizzy, finishing his second glass in one chug.

"Hnn…?" Haitani-san replied, before ordering Onodera two more beers. Onodera, unaware of Haitani-san's otherwise obvious plan, gratefully gulped the beers down.

After his fourth glass, Onodera was beginning to slur his words. Haitani-san, feeling rather confident about the situation, repeated his question. "What's your relationship with Takano?"

Onodera smirked and lay his head on the counter. "Why d'ya wanna know, Haitani-shan?" he asked in return.

Haitani-san laughed shortly. "Because I'm curious, Onodera-kun. Takano doesn't act the same around you, that's for sure."

Onodera sighed happily into the wood. "Hnn…I dunno how to eshplain…"

"Just give it your best shot."

There was a slight pause before Onodera screwed his eyes shut, and replied, "That idiot…"

"'That idiot'?"

"That idiot…we wennout in high shool…" He hiccupped, feeling the tears coming on. Every time he remembered himself and Takano-san back in their high school years, a great sadness overcame him, accompanied by a peaceful sensation. It confused him, scared him. "He tol' me…he was gonna make me fall in love wi' him…or somethin'…" He was fighting to keep the tears back now.

Meanwhile, Haitani couldn't say that he wasn't shocked. Takano had gone out with this guy back in high school? It sounded like a clichéd love story; lovers breaking up over the littlest thing, then reuniting later on in life, as boss and subordinate.

_You can't be serious, _Haitani thought. The guy was drunk; he couldn't possibly be rambling on about the actual truth. But something in him wanted to believe the man. He smirked when he realized that he was _very _interested in this man now. Who else could make Takano crack and crumble but the drunk sitting in front of him—Takano's lover from high school?

"Well, Onodera-kun, I think you've had enough. What do you say?" Haitani asked, grinning down at the smaller man. Onodera was completely out of it now—he couldn't even reply. Haitani hadn't really planned on it, but he decided to take the man home. It wasn't like Onodera really had any other options.

He called a cab and grabbed Onodera by the wrist. "Let's go, shall we?"

* * *

When they arrived at Haitani's apartment, Haitani took Onodera's coat off and placed the smaller man down on his bed. He didn't mind sleeping on the couch that night.

Suddenly, he heard a _thunk _behind him and whipped around to see a phone lying on the floor. He assumed that it was Onodera's, and picked it up. Walking over to the couch, he sat down while he turned the cell phone back on.

When it finally powered up, Haitani's eyes widened at the screen. It read: 42 missed calls, 12 new text messages, 38 new voicemail.

He soon realized that all of the new alerts were from Takano himself.

He started laughing after the first few text messages.

_Where the hell are you?_

_Are you okay?_

_You're not home, I hope you're not drunk and in an alley somewhere._

_Why aren't you answering me?_

_ONODERA!_

Haitani couldn't believe this. _So I guess Onodera-kun was actually telling the truth, huh…? _He grinned down at the phone. This was very interesting indeed.

* * *

SO. Kinda short chapter. Sorry bout that! Thank you very much for reading and reviewing~ I appreciate everyone that enjoys this story!

I don't have a lot of time to finish this—going on a roadtrip this weekend and I'm about to leave. So I'll cut this short for the week!

See you next week!


	12. Chapter 12

Misaki's Affair (Part II)

Chapter 12

* * *

Misaki was at Ijuuin-sensei's apartment, knocking on the door before he knew what the hell he was doing. He waited patiently like the naïve and somewhat docile young man he was.

"Right, right, coming," a voice called from inside. To Misaki, the voice sounded rather tense.

_Is Sensei not feeling well? I could always come back another time…_ But before he could listen to his gut and leave, his inner fanboy began speaking to him. _You're about to be the first fan to ever read this newest release of The Kan. It'd be an insult to your pride as a fan to leave! No, scratch that. It'd be an insult to Sensei himself!_

Misaki bit his lip and gave in. He waited for the door to open, and found himself gazing up at a cleanly-shaven, well-dressed Ijuuin-sensei. Misaki could swear he smelled the faint scent of cologne gently wafting from Sensei's body.

To his surprise, Misaki found himself a bit…_attracted_ to the scent.

_What the hell are you thinking?! Snap out of this, I just admire Sensei!_

He told himself this over and over.

"Come on in, Takahashi-kun!" Ijuuin-sensei ushered the smaller boy inside the _conveniently _dimly lit living room. Misaki guffawed at the large expanse of literature and manga, and practically squealed at the small pile of The Kan volumes that were strewn over Ijuuin-sensei's table.

"Oh, right. I need to find the chapter…wait here while I find the manuscript, Takahashi-kun! Help yourself to anything in the fridge, okay? I'll be right back." With that, Ijuuin-sensei left the room and disappeared.

Misaki picked up the first volume of The Kan—which was sitting on the edge of the table looking ready to topple over onto the floor—and began to read it. That was where it had all started—his admiration, his love for Ijuuin-sensei had all originated here. Misaki found himself grinning stupidly at the first chapter; Ijuuin-sensei had definitely improved since he began writing (A/N drawing..?) The Kan.

"Ah, Takahashi-kun, you look happy! Did something good happen while I was gone?"

Misaki jumped at the voice, and spun around to see Ijuuin-sensei holding a small stack of papers in one hand and two mugs of something steaming in the other.

"Ah—well, n-no, I was…I was just, um—" Misaki wanted to slap himself. _Why the hell am I stuttering?!_

"Well, I brought the manuscripts and some hot chocolate, since I didn't know if you liked coffee or not. You can sit, if you want!" Sensei offered, gesturing towards the couch with the hand holding the manuscripts.

"Um…thank you…"

Misaki sat down on the edge of the couch, blushing slightly when Ijuuin-sensei moved to sit down next to him. He hadn't thought the evening through this far…he had forgotten that he would be alone with Ijuuin-sensei the whole time he was reading.

_Crap…what have I gotten myself into?!_

* * *

Misaki wanted to fling the papers up in ecstasy. He was done with the chapter.

_I am positive that was the best chapter of The Kan I've ever read…!_

Misaki smiled dully at Ijuuin-sensei, his eyes drooping, and his body feeling heavy as lead. The chapter had been longer than the previous ones, and it had taken him an hour to finish it. It was now almost eleven thirty. "That was your best chapter yet, Sensei…" he murmured, his head bobbing up and down in a battle to stay awake. Was it just him, or had the scent of Ijuuin-sensei's cologne become stronger…?

"Why, thank you, Takahashi-kun. You don't know how much that means to me…"

Suddenly, Misaki's eyes shot wide open. He was lying on his back on the couch, under Ijuuin-sensei. It took him a moment to realize what this meant—but when his mind finally caught up with the situation, Ijuuin-sensei's lips were already at his neck. Misaki squeaked in fright when he felt Ijuuin-sensei's lips suck hard on the tender skin, and screwed his eyes shut in disgust when Ijuuin-sensei began to lick the tender spot.

"Ijuuin…sensei…" Misaki tried to growl, but it left his lips as a pant. "Please…stop this…"

"Takahashi-kun, you'll never know if you love Usami-sensei or me more if you haven't slept with us both. Why don't you just give it a try? You don't even have to let Usami-sensei know. He doesn't know you're even here, does he?"

Misaki's eyes shot open. _That's _what he had forgotten. Usagi-san. His mind cleared instantly, and he began to push up against Ijuuin-sensei's chest.

"Stop it! Sensei, I could never love you like I love Usagi-san!"

_Freeze. _

Ijuuin-sensei slowly lifted himself up to gaze down at Misaki. "And why is that, Takahashi-kun?"

_Huh? _Misaki narrowed his eyes. _He doesn't seem sad or disappointed…what is this guy thinking?_

"Takahashi-kun, I'll tell you a secret, but you can't tell anyone, 'kay?" Ijuuin-sensei smirked and didn't wait for an answer. He leaned back down and whispered in Misaki's ear, "Saying things like that only makes me fall in love with you more."

Misaki shivered.

"Okay, thank you, Sensei! I look forward to buying your new chapter!" Misaki shoved Ijuuin-sensei off of him and made a beeline for the door. He threw it open and, without shutting the door behind him, ran out into the street.

_What the hell…?_

* * *

Misaki took his time walking to the train station. He didn't want to explain that hickey to Usagi-san, which he would surely be "punished" for…but nonetheless, he knew it'd pain Usagi-san, and he didn't want to see the older man become sad because of him.

_I'm such an idiot! I knew that was going to happen! _

While in the middle of mentally beating himself up, something caught Misaki's eye from across the street. It was a small, homely-looking bar snuggled between two other buildings. Misaki's eyes widened and he wondered if he should go drinking; he was of age, after all—but he didn't want to drink alone, and he didn't have anyone to drag him home if he became too drunk to remember how to walk.

But before he could turn back around, his eyes wandered over to a small, good-looking man waiting alone outside the bar. He looked cold, and was gazing at the sky. He had a wistful look on his face; looking almost like he was about to cry.

Misaki's eyes widened for the umpteenth time that day. It was Onodera-san!

Just when Misaki was about to call out to the other man, Onodera-san's head snapped down and he was standing before a tall, also good-looking man. They exchanged a few words before entering the bar.

Misaki's head cocked to the side. Who was that? It didn't look like anyone Misaki knew, and he hadn't been introduced to anyone who looked like that by Onodera-san or Takano-san.

_Wait…he's going into a _bar _with that guy…_

Suddenly, he remembered Usagi-san's retelling of Onodera-san and Takano-san's current relationship. If Onodera-san was still in denial about his love for Takano-san, maybe he was trying to date other guys to forget about Takano-san!

_No! I can't let that happen to Takano-san!_

Misaki was about to charge across the street, burst into the bar guns ablaze and drag Onodera-san the hell out of there, but then he realized…couldn't that just be a _friend _of Onodera-san's? Guys went out for a drink all the time. There wasn't anything weird about that…

The thing that was _weird _was that Misaki was suspecting Onodera-san of trying out different guys to forget about Takano-san. He pinched himself lightly on the arm.

_Idiot. Onodera-san is a very nice person, I bet he's made more friends now that he's actually paid attention to his social life…_

Misaki nodded at his resolve. Onodera-san would never do anything like cheat on Takano-san…

Right?

* * *

OHMYGOD I'M SO SORRY! I dropped off the face of the earth again Dx I came back (kind of) due to my friend's words of wisdom: "GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER!" And so I did ^^' he's very helpful. He indirectly helped me finish this chapter~!

But anyway, I made a kind of big deal out of Ricchan's social life because of my lack of one xD I tell my friends: I don't have a social life, and I don't care for one. Problem solved, no?

So once I get all the boring filler-like setup out of the way, I can start with the next stage of the plot. Yes, Haitani and Ijuuin will play a part in the next stage. Can't keep doing the same boring shit over and over again, thinking everyone will keep reading…

Anyway, I hope this chapter was satisfactory, even with its filler-like status ^^' gomen for that.

And now… (Yes, I'm still going to say it…)

Till next week~!


	13. Chapter 13

Ritsu's Affair (Part II)

Chapter 13

* * *

Onodera Ritsu certainly _did not _want to wake up. His head was throbbing, and his throat felt like truckloads of sand had been shoved down it and he had been force-fed the gritty material. In other words, he was not comfortable at all.

But he couldn't deny the fact that he was now in a state that wasn't quite consciousness, but wasn't quite the opposite, either. He was stuck in that awkward wakefulness and unconsciousness in-between. Trying to readjust himself without completely dragging his mind free of sleep, he felt himself bump into something as he rolled over.

"Hnn…?"

He cracked open one eye, and found himself staring into a strangely familiar yet unfamiliar face at the same time. Was this the sleep affecting him?

"Good morning, Onodera-kun."

At that, Onodera's eyes snapped fully open. He winced slightly, his headache worsening, but managed to stutter out, "H-Hai—Haitani-san?!"

It was Haitaini-san's turn to wince. "Ah, don't be so loud in the morning, Onodera-kun."

"What the hell are we doing in the same bed?" Onodera continued, in the same tone as before and disregarding Haitani-san's words.

This caused the man to smirk, and Onodera felt a pit of dread form in his stomach. "Do you really want to know, Onodera-kun? Why don't we just leave it a mystery? Isn't that much more fun?" Onodera was about to reply, panicked, when Haitani-san continued with a laugh. "Don't sweat it, Onodera-kun. We—no, _I _didn't do anything. But I did find out something very interesting last night."

The dread didn't vacate his stomach. It sat there, cold and content. "What…what did you find?"

"I found this."

Onodera's eyes had to adjust to read the small text on the phone screen. It read:

"I'm sorry, Onodera. Help me make this right."

Onodera gulped. _Shit. _His face turned a brilliant red color.

Upon seeing Onodera's reaction, Haitani-san burst into laughter. "You know what this means, don't you?" Onodera could swear he felt Haitani-san inch closer to him under the sheets. "You told me last night about the two of you. 'That idiot', remember? I kind of wanted you to elaborate about your high school story, but you were dead drunk by that time, and I had to drag you back here." Haitani had to admit. The look of utter disbelief and surprise that turned Onodera-kun's face from red to white in an instant was priceless. (A/N I like to think that Haitani is the slightest bit sadistic. Not like chains and whips but…you get what I mean. ^^')

"You—how—I couldn't have—"

"Slow down there, Onodera-kun. Don't hurt yourself. You have a pretty bad hangover right now, don't you?" Haitani-san reached out to stroke Onodera's cheek with a cold palm. "You have such a pretty face, Onodera-kun. You're wasting it, only letting that Takano be able to see it in the throes of ecstasy. Won't you show me…?"

"Screw off, bastard!" Onodera snapped, slapping Haitani-san's hand away and abruptly sitting up—causing his head to scream in protest but he refused to lie back down next to this man. Haitani-san, however, didn't look surprised at all at his reaction. Instead, he looked amused by it.

"But Onodera-kun," he continued, "you wouldn't want this little tidbit of information to make its way into Marukawa Shoten, now would you?"

Onodera froze.

"You…you wouldn't."

"Would I?"

Onodera gazed in shock, fear, and disgust at the man lying the same bed as him. He was going to _blackmail _Onodera into sleeping with him? Like hell!

_But you can't let the fact that you're in a physical relationship with another man get around the department… _Onodera cringed. He was completely cornered, a rat caught in a trap. He had no other choice but to comply with Haitani-san unless he wanted his past situation—and his present one, for that matter—floating around both Marukawa and Emerald. He'd be fired on the spot, and his coworkers would probably never look at him again.

And he had no doubt in his mind that this Haitani—the true Haitani—wouldn't hesitate to put his money where his mouth was.

"I…" Onodera gulped. The sandy sensation hadn't disappeared. In fact, it had worsened. "What do you…what do you want me to do?"

Haitani-san smirked. "Wise decision, Onodera. You know, I might just have some fun with you." At first, Onodera didn't know what he meant, until Haitani-san shoved Onodera's cell phone into his face. "Call Takano and tell him that you're here."

Onodera felt his stomach lurch. _Call Takano-san? But—_

"Do it."

Onodera flinched at Haitani-san's harsh tone and hastily grabbed the phone out of his hands, dialing Takano-san's number that he somehow knew by heart. He heard the foreboding ringing begin, and abruptly end as Takano-san answered.

"Onodera."

_Crap…Takano-san sounds so calm. What will he do? How will he react? _But before he could even utter a single syllable, the phone was snatched out of his hands and Onodera's head was pulled down onto a firm chest.

"Hello there, Takano!" Haitani-san greeted cheerily. "How're you?"

There was a pause. A pause that brought a deafening silence upon the room. Even Haitani-san didn't make a sound as Takano-san began to digest what was going on.

"Haitani."

"Mhm?"

"You're on Onodera's phone."

"Of course, how could I be so rude? Onodera-kun, say hi to your 'boss'," Haitani placed the phone onto Onodera's head, enunciating the word "boss" to make it sound tenderly sarcastic.

Onodera took a few deep breaths to steady himself. He would not panic, he would not panic… "H-Hello, Takano-san…"

There was another excruciatingly painful pause. "Onodera…why are you with Haitani at seven in the morning?" Without waiting for an answer, Takano-san continued. "Haitani, I swear, if you do anything to Onodera, I'll—"

"Oh but Takano, you don't know the whole situation! I mean, it's not Onodera-kun's fault or anything! I mean, he didn't _voluntarily _tell me about his and your old relationship, and how you said you were going to make him fall in love with you again. He was drunk! Oh, and what a cute drunk he is. You'd better thank me that I didn't take advantage of him while I could."

Takano-san, again, didn't reply right away. "You wouldn't dare blackmail him, Haitani," he growled, already getting a feel for the situation, apparently.

"Oh Takano, you know me. I don't play clean, do I?" Haitani-san smirked as he spoke. "Anyway, I think Onodera-kun's phone is about to die. But if you want your cute little boyfriend back unscathed, I suggest you meet me at my apartment at noon today for a little chat. Don't be late." And with that, Haitani-san hung up. He tossed the phone down to the end of the bed, and glanced back at Onodera.

"Well, today isn't going to be boring in the least, now is it, Onodera-kun?"

* * *

I AM SO SORRY. This chapter…it honestly sucked. Probably one of my worst chapters. It was all useless dialogue, but I had to do it. Don't worry, I will somehow tie Usami, Misaki AND Ijuuin into this little meeting of theirs *smirks* it will be a meeting of the gods. But for now, please don't hate me for this crappy chapter. It had to be done to set up everything for the next chapter, which will have a whole shitload of plot and good stuff in it. I hope.

Another reason this chapter was so bad is because I really needed to update. I'm very, very sorry that I disappeared for so long. I feel horrible Dx I promise to make the next chapter great to make up for this one. (I really feel like this was bad, else I wouldn't be ranting like this.)

Ugh…I don't feel like I have the authority to say this…

See you next week~


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Ritsu and Misaki's Affair (Part I)

* * *

Misaki grunted, sitting up in a familiar bed that was surrounded by toys. A silver-haired man was still sleeping peacefully next to him, clinging to Misaki's waist. Misaki grinned slightly before peeling the older man's arms off of him, and slipped quietly out of the bed.

The boy made his way downstairs to begin preparing breakfast for him and his lover. Just as he was about to begin, he heard Usagi-san's bedroom door slam open, and the telltale sound of feet stomping their way to the stairs. _Ah, so he's awake now, _Misaki thought, smiling to himself. Usagi-san was always such a mess in the morning—

_Oh right. _Misaki stiffened when he remembered last night when he had returned from Ijuuin-sensei's place.

* * *

_"Misaki." Usagi-san's eyes were emotionless, deep pools of violet. They unnerved Misaki; the smaller boy knew exactly what was coming next. "Why the hell were you out with that mangaka tonight?" He held up his cell phone, which displayed Misaki's text from earlier on the screen. _

_"Um—well, there's a reason for that, of course…haha…" Misaki began tentatively, not wanting to make his older lover's already terrible mood become worse. When Usagi-san raised an eyebrow, Misaki continued. "He said I could read the newest chapter of The Kan at his place, so I went! And that—that's exactly what we did." Misaki desperately fought the blush that threatened to shade his cheeks red. _

_But Usagi-san could read Misaki's fruitless attempts like a book. "What did he do to you?" Usagi-san asked, grabbing Misaki by the shoulder. Misaki cringed, inadvertently exposing the otherwise unnoticeable hickey on his neck. Misaki watched in dismay as Usagi-san's eyes widened. "Did he do this to you…?" It was a rhetorical question, Misaki realized, and he didn't respond. Usagi-san knew now, but he was probably thinking those strange thoughts of his—that he had _let _Ijuuin-sensei do this to him. _

_"That's not what it's like!" Misaki exclaimed after a few moments of silence. "Ijuuin-sensei just pushed me down…and he did that…" He gulped. Usagi-san's face was rapidly losing its look of rage, being replaced by a look of deep sadness. "Usagi-san! Listen to me!" Misaki tried again, trying to get his lover's attention. His eyes were distant. "I told Ijuuin-sensei that I could never love someone like I love you!"_

_That, of course, caught the silver-haired man's attention. "You…what?"_

_"I definitely made it clear to him this time that I only have room for you in my heart…" _And Nii-chan, but I can't ruin the mood by saying that_, Misaki thought. _

_Misaki stared up into Usagi-san's eyes, silently pleading with the older man to forgive him. If Usagi-san really hated Ijuuin-sensei this much, and he wished for it, Misaki would never go to see Ijuuin-sensei personally again—if he could help it. _

_"Misaki…" Usagi-san suddenly descended upon the smaller boy and pulled him into a tight, loving embrace. Misaki blinked, and his blush finally broke out full-force all over his face—and even tinged his ears an adorable shade of pinkish red. He felt Usagi-san begin to lick the hickey Ijuuin-sensei had made earlier that evening, and he mumbled, "I will erase his touch from your body, Misaki." And with that, Usagi-san had picked him up and hauled him to his room—proceeding to make love to Misaki well into the night._

* * *

"Ah…good morning, Usagi-san…" He still felt uncomfortable addressing Usagi-san. After their last round of intercourse the night before, Misaki had taken a last look at Usagi-san—and that look of sadness had returned to darken his award-worthy visage.

Usagi-san simply made his way to Misaki and gave the boy a quick kiss on the cheek. Just as Usagi-san was sitting down, Misaki snapped his fingers, remembering his sighting of Onoder-san the night before. "Oh, and Usagi-san! You'll never believe who I saw on my way home yesterday!" Disregarding Usagi-san's dark look, Misaki continued. "It was Onodera-san!"

Misaki giggled at the look of surprise on Usagi-san's face. "Onodera? Was he with Takano?"

Misaki froze. _Ah, no, he wasn't. _"N-no…I don't think so…" Misaki mumbled, looking down at his hands, ready to cook, but he didn't reach for the cooking utensils that sat at his fingertips. "He was with someone…someone else, that I didn't recognize."

Usagi-san furrowed his brow. "Huh…" he breathed out.

Misaki whipped out his cell from his pocket, forcing out a couple of laughs. "This is what cell phones are for! We can ask him what's up, right?"

Usagi-san sighed. "You have Onodera's mail address?"

"Ah—no."

"Here, I'll give it to you, then. This was his address when he was my editor."

Usagi-san handed Misaki his phone, and Misaki copied Onodera-san's mail address into his own phone and typed in a message. It read:

"Hello, Onodera-san! It's Takahashi Misaki, from a couple of Saturdays ago! I saw you last night at that bar! I was just wondering, what's up? And could we have another get-together soon?" Misaki blushed at the last part. There was no harm in asking just one more time, right? Quickly, before his adrenaline faded and he deleted the last line, he hit "Send" and gave Usagi-san back his phone.

"What did you say?" Usagi-san asked, causing Misaki's blush to deepen.

"Just…um…asked what was up," Misaki replied, not looking Usagi-san in the eye. Usagi-san chuckled the slightest bit at Misaki's reaction to his question and pulled the boy to his chest.

"And now we wait for a reply."

* * *

Onodera tested the sheets that bound his hands to the bedpost. Nothing budged, and the little hope he had left withered away. Haitani was insane—he had to be. Why else would you tie a person up to your bed and leave the room without another word like it was nothing?

A faint buzzing noise snapped him out of his daze of self-pity. He glanced around for his phone and found it lying on the floor; it had probably fallen off when Haitani had been preparing _this _for Onodera.

He tried to somehow reach the phone in any possible way he could, but to no avail. There was no way he was going to reach that phone. He threw his head back on the mattress, defeated.

Why was this happening, anyway? Did Haitani-san hate Takano-san that much? To the point where he involved completely innocent people in his brilliant plans to piss Takano-san off? _Really, what is this guy's deal with Takano-san? _Onodera wondered as he closed his eyes. Suddenly, he heard the door click open.

"Here here, Onodera-kun. I bought some food for you," Haitani-san's voice was too cheery for the current predicament. Maybe this guy really was insane. Still, Onodera was hungry, and the only way he would be able to eat would be if Haitani-san untied his hands from the sheets and gave him the cheap cup ramen. If he shut up for a moment, maybe Haitani-san would think he had calmed down.

"Alright, now open up."

Onodera stared stupidly at the man, who was stirring the cup ramen around with a pair of chopsticks. _Open up? _Did he mean…

"You are _not _feeding me, you perverted bastard! Just let me go, for crying out loud!" Onodera screeched when he realized what Haitani-san meant. This guy had either completely lost it or was just extremely weird. He thought he would _feed _another grown man?

"Onodera, just cooperate. If you don't, you already know what will happen." Haitani-san didn't look worried about Onodera's outburst at all. He simply shrugged and nudged at Onodera's mouth with the chopsticks.

Onodera was seething. This was beyond humiliating. "You crazy bastard. Takano-san might just call the police on you, you know?" he tried, but Haitani-san didn't react the way he thought he would—instead, he smirked.

"He would never leave his precious Onodera-kun alone with the person he hates most, don't you think?" he asked, his tone sarcastically sappy. "I mean, he doesn't know that I'm not really touching you at the moment. Of course, that could change…" he trailed off as he trailed his fingers down Onodera's throat, causing the smaller man to involuntary shiver under him. Haitani-san's smirk had made a permanent return. "Ah, Onodera-kun, your reactions are so pure and sweet." His fingers trailed lower, down his chest, and began to travel even lower when—

The phone began to buzz again. Onodera let out the breath he had been holding, and Haitani-san glanced around. He found the phone on the floor and picked it up, flipping it open as he did so. Apparently, someone was trying to call Onodera. He answered the call and held it to his ear.

"Ah, Onodera-san?" a small, boyish voice asked. "It's Takahashi from a couple of weeks ago, remember? Well, you didn't answer my mail from earlier and I just wanted to call to see what was up…and…" There was a slight pause, but the boy continued. "I wanted to ask if you and Takano-san wanted to go out on another get-together with me and Usagi-san!" The boy gasped slightly. "I mean Usami-san!"

Haitani-san blinked a few times. Onodera could hear Takahashi-kun from where he was, and he blushed. What would Takahashi-kun do when he heard another guy on Onodera's phone?

_Please don't say anything weird…_ Onodera silently pleaded. Of course, Haitani-san sent a triumphant glance his way and replied.

"Hello there, Takahashi-kun. This is Haitani, Onodera-kun's _friend._" The man smirked as he spoke the word and sent a sidelong glance at Onodera. "Onodera-kun isn't really able to get to his phone right now. A get-together, you say? How about at my place? Onodera-kun is here as well, and Takano will be getting here soon." Onodera's eyes widened as Haitani-san continued to tell Takahashi-kun his address. Have Takahashi-kun and Usami-sensei come _here? _That was insane! "All right, Takahashi-kun, we'll see you then!" With that, he slapped the phone shut and tossed it back on the floor carelessly.

"Be careful with other peoples' things!" Onodera cried, hoping his phone hadn't broken.

Haitani-san just shrugged and placed the cup ramen on his nightstand. "I guess I'd better freshen up for our guests, right, Onodera-kun?" he asked, leaving the room without a second glance at Onodera. He was too busy thrashing around, trying to free himself of his constraints to care anyway.

_I am never going out for drinks with anyone anymore!_

* * *

Misaki flinched as the man on the other end abruptly ended the call. Was that the guy Onodera-san had gone drinking with? He shuddered. The guy had sounded kind of…off. A little strange. But in any case, he was inviting Usagi-san and himself over to meet with Onodera-san and Takano-san, so it was okay. He whirled around to tell Usagi-san the news.

"Usagi-san, Onodera's friend invited us to go to his house, and we can meet with Onodera-san and Takano-san there," Misaki chirped, his enthusiasm shining in his emerald eyes.

Usagi-san blinked. "What friend?" he asked, picturing the small man they had met at the bookstore during their last outing together. But he had been a colleague, hadn't he? Had Onodera said that the man was his friend?

Misaki shrugged. "He said his name was Haitani. I don't really know him, but I think he might have been the guy Onodera-san was out drinking with the other day. I think…maybe Onodera-san spent the night there." Misaki squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. He didn't want to believe that Onodera-san could have possibly cheated on Takano-san…but Takano-san had known that Onodera-san was out drinking with this Haitani guy, right? Didn't he say he was going over to Onodera-san's apartment the other day?

_You have to see for yourself. _

Misaki's eyes snapped open at the thought. Instead of childish enthusiasm lighting his eyes, a determination to find out what Onodera-san was doing replaced it. Usagi-san sent a questioning glance his way, but didn't say anything.

"We're going, right?" Misaki asked, his gaze returning to the phone still held in his hands.

"Yes, of course. Takano is going as well, right? Why wouldn't we?"

Misaki breathed out a sigh of relief. It was going to be okay, and maybe he could figure out this whole mess for Takano-san and Onodera-san both.

"Well, Misaki, we might as well get ready," Usagi-san said, and at that, dragged the boy up to his room to clothe him in something appropriate for the occasion—he couldn't have some stranger seeing Misaki's exposed skin that the boy's V-neck shirt made visible. He helped Misaki into his favorite pair of jeans, and a long-sleeve shirt. As for Usami, he fixed himself into a suit and persuaded Misaki to fix his tie for him—with a little help from Usami, of course.

Something still nagged at Misaki, though. He couldn't shake the feeling that Haitani-san wasn't exactly a person to be trusted. And there was an even more distant feeling of premonition—he felt like something, for better or for worse, was going to happen that afternoon.

* * *

AN: Ok, so the chapter had gotten really long, and I decided to split it into parts. Hope you don't mind~

Haitani likes bondage because he's kinda-sorta a sadist, remember? Sorry. I like bondage too. Merr.

I'll be posting the other parts throughout the week, and it's mostly finished. If you have any suggestions for my last few chapters to this story, let me know now! I'll hopefully find a way to incorporate it into the fic. I can easily edit things around, and since I've recently discovered the leisure of having a beta reader for one of my other stories, it's becoming hard for me to go back and actually re-edit my works…but nonetheless, I'll try my best to give you guys the great ending I promised.

I must say I'm seriously embarrassed and ashamed that I haven't come back to this story, nor Egoistic Terrorism over the course of these couple of months. I'm really an asshole, aren't I ;-; anyway. Please forgive me for making you all wait so goddamn long for these chapters, and I sincerely hope they'll turn out to be worth the wait!

Thank you all for putting up with my crap (:


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Ritsu and Misaki's Affair (Part II)

* * *

When his phone rang just before he was about to leave for Haitani's apartment to fetch his troublesome first love, Takano shot a glare in its direction but was surprised when he flipped it open to hear Takahashi's voice on the other end.

"Takano-san! Usagi-san and I were wondering whether you wanted us to pick you up to go to Haitani-san's place or not," the boy asked rapidly, his voice a higher pitch than usual. He was nervous about something, obviously.

But that was the least of Takano's concerns. _They _were going to see Haitani, too? How the hell did they know each other? "You and that author of yours are going to that bastard's place?" he asked, irritation clear in his tone. There was a slight pause before Takahashi replied to that.

"Um, aren't you friends, Takano-san? Onodera-san was there, too—"

"I know that!" Takano cut the boy off, then realized what he was doing and regained his composure. "I know. He's not supposed to be there, and I need to get him back, alright? So just don't interfere and stay at that author's—"

"Like I would just let a hotheaded idiot run into some random guy's apartment alone to get his boyfriend back," a deeper, more mature voice cut in. Usami-sensei.

Takano _tsk_ed. He wasn't hotheaded…

"We're going with you. Onodera was my old editor, too, and…" Usami-sensei trailed off. "I thought maybe I'd help the two of you," he finished.

"Well that's nice of you," Takano replied sarcastically, glancing at the clock. He needed to leave. Now.

"Yeah, well. You're going with us, right?"

"No, I need to leave now. I can't wait for you to drive up here in your pretty little sports car," Takano replied, grabbing his bag and heading out his door.

"Then this is convenient for you, because my pretty little sports car is right outside your complex," Usami-sensei retorted smoothly.

Takano stopped short, and immediately wanted to ask how he knew where Onodera and he lived, but he knew the famous author had his methods. So he shut up about it and decided that riding in the sports car would definitely be faster than flagging down a taxi.

"Fine, I'll be there in a second."

After he had waited in upmost irritation for the elevator to reach the ground floor, Takano brushed his way past loiterers and made his way outside to find Usami-sensei's car parked spectacularly outside the complex. He wanted to roll his eyes at the sight of people gawking and admiring the expensive car, but he held himself back.

He found the passenger seat open, with Takahashi in the back, so he slid in next to Usami-sensei.

"Good to see you again, Takano." Usami-sensei sent a sidelong glance his way through his impressive and undoubtedly expensive sunglasses.

"Just shut up and drive," Takano replied to the mocking comment.

* * *

Ijuuin glanced up from where he was sitting. The park bench had a perfect view of an urban apartment standing against two other buildings, each standing out in their own way. It was great inspiration for his next chapter.

Yet he narrowed his eyes at the scene. Something was off. He glanced around the area, until he found what had been putting him off. A bright red sports car, unquestionably belonging to one famous author in particular, was idling in front of the building as if in wait for someone. When a tall, dark-haired man emerged from the entrance of the apartment to crouch down and enter the car, Ijuuin's interested was indefinitely piqued.

_What's going on? What business does that guy have with Usami-sensei? _Looking closer, he realized that there was someone in the backseat. Takahashi-kun. _What? Where are they going? _

Ijuuin immediately shot out of the bench and made his way to his own car that was parked in front of the apartment, as well. He had only been planning on being out for a half an hour, but this was an interesting development. The tall man had looked panicked and rushed; what had gotten him in such a state—and what did it all have to do with Usami-sensei and Takahashi-kun?

Luckily, the car started up quickly and he was able to catch up with Usami-sensei's conveniently uncommon choice of vehicle. Along the way, he had to lose them on purpose and then find them again since they had, apparently, made a few wrong turns and had to backtrack to find their way again.

When they had supposedly reached their final destination, it was a nicer apartment complex than the one the dark-haired man lived in. Usami-sensei parked the car and the three of them all got out in unison, each looking ruffled—the unfamiliar man in particular. Ijuuin parked as well and tried to keep as inconspicuous as possible while he followed them into the complex. Luckily, they didn't take the stairs, but took the elevator instead. Ijuuin watched as the elevator doors closed, concealing its passengers. The floor number Seven lit up above the doors, indicating that that was the floor they were headed to. Ijuuin quickly made his way up seven flights of stairs, reaching the floor just as he heard the elevator ding in announcement of their arrival.

For a moment, he wondered why he was so curious about what was going on, but he shrugged the thought off. Anything to try and persuade Takahashi-kun.

He watched from around a corner as the dark-haired man glanced at his phone, then back up at the room numbers. He didn't look too happy; maybe he had a business meeting and needed Usami-sensei's help for something? But then why did they bring Takahashi-kun along?

Then suddenly, they stopped in front of one of the doors and the dark-haired man knocked. Once, twice, three times. Three serious, seemingly intimidating knocks.

That was when Ijuuin crept out of his hiding spot. "Usami-sensei, Takahashi-kun! What a surprise to see the two—" he cut himself off on purpose, hoping to get the other man's name, "—I mean, _three _of you here this afternoon. What brings you here?"

Usami-sensei's expression immediately darkened when he realized it was Ijuuin speaking. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Ah, I asked first, Usami-sensei. Maybe Takahashi-kun would just kindly answer for me, though," Ijuuin continued, almost laughing at the shadow that now seemed to cover all of Sensei's face. He turned to the smaller boy, who looked slightly surprised. Ijuuin had to admit, he was relieved to find an absence of fear or disgust in the boy's emerald eyes—another emotion replaced it: concern.

Ijuuin frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked ambiguously, turning to no one in particular.

"Who is this, Usami?" the dark-haired man asked, nodding to Ijuuin.

Usami-sensei sighed. "Some mangaka Misaki likes…Ijuuin Kyo."

Ijuuin smiled in greeting. "Nice to meet you…?"

The other dark-haired male took up the unspoken request for a name. "Takano Masamune. I'm sorry, but I have no time to meet new little friends of Takahashi's. The two of them aren't even supposed to be here…." He trailed off, turning back to the door. "And why hasn't this bastard answered yet?"

"Coming~!" a man's voice answered from the other side of the threshold. "I just wanted to see where that little meeting of yours went. You're not very friendly, are you, Takano? At least be cordial to the poor man. It's bad business."

"Shut the hell up and open this damn door!" Takano demanded, slamming a fist onto the solid barrier.

There was a slight pause before the man replied. "Woah, woah, take it easy there, Takano. You'll get your little boyfriend back in time."

Takano gritted his teeth together, infuriated by Haitani's joking outlook on the situation. He wasn't being funny—if he wanted _his _first love, _his _Ritsu back, he would get him back. So instead of making a bigger deal out of it and possibly frightening Haitani away, he crossed his arms at his chest and waited. "Well? Aren't we going to eat or someshit before you let Onodera go?"

He could almost _see _the bastard laughing on the other side of the door.

"Right, right. Just promise not to hit me when you come in, okay, _Takano?" _The man's voice had lost its cheery overtone and sounded almost chilly, but Takano simply nodded, knowing Haitani was looking at the group of four through his door's peephole. "Okay, come on in." At the clicking of a few locks, the door opened the slightest bit, at which Takano shoved it open and stormed in.

"Onodera!" he called, looking in vain around the living room for the smaller man. After repeatedly calling the name into every hallway, though never leaving the living room in case that was taboo, he realized that Onodera probably _couldn't _answer his calls. At the thought, he shot an almost terrifying glare Haitani's way, though the man's irritating front did not crack in the slightest under the weight of Takano's gaze. "What the hell have you done with Onodera?"

Haitani shrugged at Takano's open fury. "Ah, nothing much…let's just say he's going to want to feel _very _good _very _soon—it just depends on how this meeting of ours goes as to who is going to make him feel good, of course." He laughed at Takano's innocently infuriated reaction and turned to the dining room. "Shall we eat now? I prepared more food since this charming Takahashi-kun asked to come, but who may these two be?" He nodded to Usami-sensei and Ijuuin-sensei.

After introducing themselves, and Usami-sensei shrugging off the slight surprise Haitani showed at hosting the biggest author in Japan at his apartment, the group of five made their way to the dining room as Haitani had suggested.

From there, the atmosphere was immediately thrown into a downward spiral.

After everyone had a serving of something to their liking in front of them on an impeccably white glass plate, Takano was the first to speak. "Quit with this bullshit Haitani. Just let me take Onodera back."

Haitani, in response, simply grinned—though the expression looked anything but lighthearted. "Well you see, it's just so much fun watching you get all hot and bothered about this first love of yours that I don't think I could do that so easily. I mean, you never seemed to care much for anything before, but here you are blowing your top over the past."

"This isn't about the past, it's about the present," Takano retorted, looking more and more irritated as the conversation heated up. "You have no business with Onodera anymore."

Haitani placed his chin on the heel of his hand, looking much too amused by the conversation than he should have been. "Ah, but I do, Takano. You see, while we were alone here, we—"

"You _better _not have done _anything _to Onodera, you sick bastard." Quite eerily, instead of raising his voice, Takano's tone remained threateningly low.

Suddenly, a quiet voice spoke up from one side of the table. "Um, so, Takano-san…you didn't know that Onodera-san was going out with Haitani-san the other day?" Misaki asked, his eyebrows drawing together in confusion. Just what was going on here?

Takano turned his head to stare at Misaki. "Of course not. If I knew he was going out with this…man," he seemed to have trouble regarding the man in even a distantly respectful way, "I would have locked him in my apartment myself…"

Misaki felt his fists clench in guilt. He _definitely _should have told Takano-san what had happened—then they wouldn't be in this mess to begin with.

After seeing Misaki so troubled, Usami-sensei spoke up himself. "And just why are _you _here?" he asked the man sitting across from him.

Ijuuin-sensei smiled innocently. "I saw my lovely Takahashi-kun going off with the two of you, so I just couldn't keep my curiosity from taking over. But ah, I suppose you know what happened between the two of us the other day, right?"

Usami's expression mirrored Takano's. "Of course I do, after seeing that obvious hickey you left on him. Don't worry though, I thoroughly cleansed him of your horrid treatment."

"Ah, don't be mean, Usami-sensei. It was just my way of telling Takahashi-kun that I love him, right?"

Haitani spoke up from his place at the table. "So you three are all gay?" He didn't miss a beat, making his straightforward question throw the three off. Even Takano seemed rather surprised that Usami-sensei had something of a love rival on his hands—or at least, from what he'd heard, it seemed like this Ijuuin-sensei was a love rival.

Usami was the first to answer. "I'm simply in love with Misaki."

The smaller man blushed furiously at the declaration. Ijuuin-sensei's next words didn't help much either.

"As am I. I'm serious about him, unlike what Usami-sensei thinks…" he picked up his glass of wine that Haitani had provided and took a sip, eyeing both Usami and Misaki as he did so.

Their host smirked at the words of both men, and most of all, at Takahashi-kun's reaction. It reminded him so much of Onodera's own reactions to his suggestive advances that morning. "I see…well _that _is an interesting development, wouldn't you say, Takano?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued. "Well, I suppose I shouldn't keep everyone here that much longer, right?"

"Damn right…" Takano muttered, though Haitani's question had seemed rhetorical.

"If that's so, then I shall make a proposition with all of you." Both Takano and Usami's expressions darkened greatly at the smirk that had made its way to Haitani's lips. "If you allow both me and this Ijuuin-sensei here to have our way with Takahashi-kun and Onodera-kun, I'll give him back to you, Takano."

His words caused an immediate uproar.

"What the _fuck _do you think you're saying, bastard!" Takano bellowed, engulfed in pure fury. How could this man even conjure a thought as disgusting as that?

Usami's enraged voice matched Takano's in both tone and volume. "You honestly think we'd go along with that bullshit?" Misaki cringed—it was one of the rare times Usagi-san ever raised his usually calm, quiet voice.

Ijuuin continued to sit, not making a sound. This man was interesting, indeed, but his proposition was even more so.

After Takano and Usami's heated protests had subsided, Misaki finally spoke. "Umm…if it would help you get Onodera-san back, Takano-san, then…" he gulped audibly. "Then I wouldn't…mind…"

Usami's violet gaze flicked to the small boy. There was a slight pause before he could finally speak. "Wh…_what _are you saying, Misaki?" he asked incredulously. "You can't be serious…"

Misaki fidgeted under the unbelieving stare. "But…if it's for Takano-san and Onodera-san, I'll do it…"

Takano clenched his fist and banged it on the table harshly, causing heads to whip in his direction and several drinks to overturn and spill their contents onto the table—not that anyone really cared at that point. "Cut it out with this bullshit, Haitani. Just give me back Onodera. I played along with your ridiculously stupid game, and now it's over. Don't involve these three just because it's convenient for you."

"Well, I can't say the _only _reason I'm doing this is because it's convenient…but I think it's interesting." He narrowed his eyes at Ijuuin-sensei. "This man here is obviously the odd one out in their little love triangle, and if literature doesn't fail me, then that means he'll be the one without in the end. Why not let him get just a little taste of bliss before that happens?"

Usami answered before Takano could even open his mouth. "Because it's sick. If Misaki is against it, there wouldn't be a point!"

"Ah, but I've given Takahashi-kun a reason to _not _be against it. An excuse, if you will," Haitani answered, smirk present.

This time, it was Usami's turn to clench his fist. _This fool surely isn't right in the head._

"So, since you've been so kind as to comply with my little proposition, Takahashi-kun, why don't we get to it?"

* * *

A/N

PLEASE DON'T HATE ME FOR HAITANI'S PLAN D: I had actually planned this at the start of this arc, and though I contemplated whether or not to go through with it, I just decided to screw it cause I do what I want.

Kidding. But seriously, if anyone really hates this I'm sorry. But I'm gonna go through with what I originally had in mind for the arc *^* And that may or may not mean that Haitani's plan will succeed, so don't get too worried about it. Yet. You can worry about it next chapter.

In the meantime, I'm yet again extremely sorry for the wait. What had I said last chapter? That I was gonna update within the week? HA. HINDSIGHT'S A BITCH.

_Do I smell potential HaitanixIjuuin? . _What? I didn't say anything.

Thank you for reading and I hope all you lovelies will stay with me until the end!

Ja ne~!


End file.
